Betrayed
by MonkeyStrawhatLuffy
Summary: Luffy and Alley are back in one last adventure. Will this one tear them apart? LuffyxOC. This is the sequel to Jealousy.
1. Chapter 1:Big Plans

_Alley is back in one more adventure. Three years have gone by since she made the decision to join Luffy's crew. Now it's time to see if it was really worth it._

**Betrayed**

**Chapter 1**

I looked out at the ocean. It was rolling and the sun was reflected on it's surface. I sighed with contentment. The breeze blew my hair in front of my face so I reached up to brush it away but was distracted by the glint on my ring finger. I slowly lowered my hand and looked at the ring on it. A smile spread across my face. I had waited three years for this ring.

Two weeks ago, me and Luffy had been sitting in the crows nest. I had noticed that he was acting sort of wierd. Well, weirder then usual anyway. When I had tried to start a conversation with him, he hadn't talked much at all. After a moment of silence, he had turned to me and looked me straight in the eye. That's when he had asked me to marry him. He had given me the ring I was now wearing. Of course I had accepted. During the three years we had spent together, I had fallen even deeper in love with him.

So, for the past two weeks, we had been busy planning our wedding. At first we agreed that we would keep it a secret until the right time but we soon learned that it was hard to keep secrets on this crew. With in two days, evryone knew and was getting in on the action. Nami had said that she would help me and I was pretty sure that Zoro and Sanji were helping Luffy.

I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around to see who it was.

"We wondered where you went. Actually, Nami sent me to find you. She needs to talk to you about something." Vivi said as she walked up behind me.

"I guess I need a better hiding place." I replied with a laugh.

"Yeah. You're easy to find just standing here on the deck." she said.

I smiled. "Atleast Nami sent you instead of coming herself. Otherwise, she would have dragged me below deck by now. All I'm trying to do is get a breath of fresh air. It seems like I can't breathe without Nami hovering over me saying do this or do that. I can't wait till this whole thing is over. I just pictured this whole thing so much different." I said with a sigh.

"You don't really feel that way. You're just tired. It'll all work out, trust me. I know how Nami can be about these things. I went through it, remember?" Vivi asked.

"I remember." I replied.

"And look at me now. I'm still here. And me and Kohza are happy, just like you'll be." she said.

"I guess you're right." I said. "Well, we better get back before Nami comes after both of us."

"Yeah, we better go!" Vivi replied.

I smiled. Over the past three years, despite our rough start, me and Vivi had become close friends. I was happy to have her here to help me with one of the biggest things in my life. When I really thought about it, things were going great. I had great friends, a great home on Thousand Sunny, and I was getting ready to be married to the Pirate King.

The only thing that was missing was my old crew. I wished Sandra was here to see this and help me. She understood me better then most people. But I had left that life far behind me. This was no time to be thinking of that.

I came back to reality. Vivi had already started heading back below deck and I had to ran to catch up with her.

In the Men's Quarters

"When can we eat Sanji? I'm hungry!" Luffy complained.

"Oi Luffy. Can't you think of anything else besides your stomach? This is your wedding after all." Sanji replied.

"I know. But I'm hungry." Luffy said. "Can't we take a break?"

"Does this guy ever stop thinking of his stomach?" Kohza asked. Even after three years on the crew, he still couldn't get used to Luffy's enormous appetite.

"You get used to it." Zoro replied.

"Luffy, we're trying to help you but if you don't shut it, I'm going to shove my foot all the way up your-" Sanji started to say but was interrupted by Chopper.

"Stop fighting! Can't we go one day without having this arguement?!" Chopper cried.

"Just stay out of this!" Sanji said.

"Yeah. What he said. Just stay out of it!" Usopp agreed.

"You too Usopp!" Sanji said. "Stay out of my arguements!!!"

"O-O-Okay!" Usopp stuttered. He sat down in the corner.

"As I was saying. If you don't shut up Luffy, I'll-" Sanji said but was once again interupted by Chopper.

"No you won't! We've already had enough injuries on this ship! This is supposed to be a fun time!!! So just STOP IT!!!!!" Chopper shouted. He and Sanji were now face to face.

"Make me!" Sanji replied.

"I'm hungry!" Luffy said from his position beside Sanji and Chopper.

"BUTT OUT!!!" they both yelled at him.

Before things got worse, Franky opened the door and walked in, disrupting the arguement. "The girls are getting hungry Sanji." he said. "They sent me down here to tell you."

"Coming Nami-Swaaannnn!!!" Sanji said with hearts in his eyes. He dashed out of the room and toward the kitchen.

Chopper sighed and sunk to the floor. "We'll never get these plans done." he said with a sigh.

"I take it things aren't going so well?" Franky asked.

"Everybody's tired and grouchy. And Luffy and his stomach aren't helping much." Zoro replied.

"Why don't you just take a break and join the girls for lunch?" Franky suggested.

"That's the best idea I've heard." Kohza said. He and Zoro stood up and walked out of the room, followed by Usopp and Franky.

Luffy and Chopper stared at the door they had just gone through.

"Should we follow?" Chopper asked. When he got no reply, he looked over at Luffy only to find that he was fast asleep. "Oi! Luffy!!! Wake up!!!" Chopper said. When he had no luck, he gave up and walked out and caught up with the others.

Luffy woke up. "Hey! Guys? Guys!!!" he called. When he saw the open door he got up and ran out. "Wait for me! Huh? Where'd they go?" He stood there trying to decide which way to go. "I'm hungry! I'll go to the kitchen!" he decided and ran off in that direction.

I entered the kitchen along with Nami, Vivi, and Robin. We had decided to take a break from planning and get some food. We had sent Franky, who had been making some kind of improvement to the ship, to tell Sanji to fix us something. It looks like he had told him because when we sat down, Sanji brought over quite a few dishes. He set down fresh fruit cups in front of all of us. Then he set down cups of coconut milk and finally, a steaming plate of broiled fish.

"Enjoy." he said.

"Oh thank you Sanji-kun!" Nami said as she hugged him. "Could you keep the other boys out for us so we can eat in peace?"

"Anything for you Miss Nami!" Sanji said. Hearts where flying everywhere from him. He floated over to the door. "Is this good my dear?"

"Perfect. Just stay there until we're done." she replied with a little wave.

We all ate quietly for a few moments. Then, I heard footsteps from the hallway. The door burst open and Luffy, Usopp, Chopper, Franky, Kohza, and Zoro came piling in. Luffy and Usopp, who were in front, suddenly were thrown back into the rest of the group with a kick from Sanji.

"Wait you're turn. You're disturbing the ladies." he said.

"What was that for you love sick, dart-board eyebrowed, cheff?!!" Zoro cried.

"Quiet! You're disturbing Miss Nami!!!" Sanji replied.

"It's okay Sanji-kun. We're done." Nami said as she got up from the table. And then to me, "Meet me in our room in half an hour. We'll continue planning." Then she walked off. Robin and Vivi soon followed.

I stood up. On my way out, I grabbed Luffy out of the pile in front of the door and dragged him out with me. When I had shut the door to the kitchen, I turned around to face him. "I've missed you." I said.

He smiled. "Yeah. I've missed you too. It's been sort of crazy around here, huh?" he asked.

"Crazier then usual, you mean?" I replied. "I have a little while before I have to meet up with Nami. Follow me."

"Can I just get something to eat before-" he started to say but I cut him off.

"Here." I said. I handed him my napkin. In it was a few pieces of fish.

"Thanks!" he exclaimed.

"No problem. I thought you would be hungry. Now come on before anyone figures out we're gone." I said. I started off down the hallway. Luffy shoved the fish into his mouth and followed.

We came out on deck. I ran across the lawn and began the climb to the crows nest. I motioned for Luffy to follow. When we finally where alone up there I let out a small, contented sigh.

"It seems like forever since we've been able to do this." I said as I layed my head on his chest.

He smiled. "Yeah." he agreed.

"Maybe we should have tried to keep this whole thing a secret." I said.

"We did." Luffy pointed out.

"I know but...maybe we should have tried harder." I replied. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, but it's not so bad. They just care, that's all." Luffy said.

"I can't believe we're getting married." I said.

"I don't." he replied. "You're a great person and I love you."

I grinned. Same old Luffy. We sat there in silence, just enjoying each others company. Finally, I reluctantly sat up. "We better get back to planning. Nami says she's already picked out an island where this whole thing will take place. She said we're getting close. About three days. She wants everything ready by then. She's going to be working on my dress this afternoon. Joy. Oh well. She is doing a good job. Well, I've gotta go. See you later." I said. We climbed out of the crows nest and walked across the lawn together. When we were below deck, we kissed goodbye and went our seperate ways.

_Everything in Alley's world is pretty much perfect but perfect can never last to long, can it?_


	2. Chapter 2:Captured!

_Alley's perfect life is about to come to an end. What will she do?_

**Chapter 2**

"Wake UP!!!" Nami yelled as she shook me.

"Huh?" I said as I slowly opened my eyes. After me and Luffy had gone our seperate ways, I had gotten back to planning and trying on dresses that Nami had made. I had been really tired and I guessed I must have fallen asleep. It appeared to be morning. "What's going on?" I sat up. I had been laying on the floor of our room.

"There's something you might want to see." Nami replied.

"What?" I asked. I was still half asleep.

"Here." she said as she handed me the newspaper. "This came this morning. A pigeon brought it to us. It was expensive but now I see it was worth the trouble."

I stared at the paper she had handed me. I was fully awake now. "No." I said with barely a whisper.

"I'm sorry." Nami said. She layed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"No!" I cried. "Impossible! No no NO!!!" I stood up and ran out of the room. I didn't know where I was going. I didn't care. As I was running, I was screaming at the top of my lungs. "NO!!!" I cried as I ran. Everyone started coming out to see what was wrong. I didn't even notice them. Suddenly, I ran smack into someone. I fell down on the floor and just sat there. The paper fell beside me.

"Are you okay?" Luffy asked.

I looked at him. Suddenly I felt very tired. I picked up the paper that I had dropped and handed it to Luffy. I was shaking now. It was just so hard to believe.

Luffy looked down at the paper. He studied it for a minute and then he looked down at me.

"What do I do?" I asked him desperately.

He continued to look at me and then he sighed. "Go after them." he said.

"What?!" I asked in astonishment.

"Even if you aren't there captain any more, they're still your nakama, aren't they?" he replied.

I stared at him. He was right. He handed me back the paper and I looked at it again. I couldn't believe this was really happening. My old crew, they had been captured by the World Government and were being held at the now rebuilt Enies Lobby. They were scheduled for death is what it had said. I still couldn't believe it though.

I looked back up at Luffy and stood up with the paper in my hand. "Okay. I'll do it. I'll go and save them!" I declared.

Luffy smiled. "Great!" he said. "That's what I wanted to hear!"

For the rest of the morning, I made preperations to travel to Enies Lobby. Apparently, it had been rebuilt after the Buster Call because the government needed easy access to Impel Down. It wouldn't be easy to get into because of what Luffy and his crew had done to the last one.

By that afternoon, I was ready to go. They had given me one of the small Mini Merry's to ride in. "Well, I guess I'm off." I said as I climbed into the small boat.

"Wait!" Nami called from the deck. I looked up to see what she wanted. "Here! You'll need this!" she called down. She tossed me something.

I caught it. It was a log pose.

"It's set for Enies Lobby!" she called. "It was Franky's, but, you need it more!"

"Thanks!" I called back.

Luffy climbed into the boat beside me. "Well, good luck." he said.

"Thanks. I'll need it." I replied. "Well, I guess this is goodbye. For now."

"Yeah. I guess so." he replied. He looked at his feet.

I smiled. Then I hugged him. "Thanks for everything. I'll be back as soon as I get this whole thing straightened out. Then we will be married. Promise?" I said as I let go of him.

"I promise." he said. Then he climbed back up on deck with the rest of the crew.

I looked up at them all. Luffy was smiling. Zoro was standing there but I saw a small grin on his face. Nami was waving. Usopp was waving and cheering along with Chopper and Franky. Sanji was lighing another cigerette. Robin was standing there, watching silently with an amused smile. Vivi was smiling and waving. Kohza stood beside her with a small smile.

"Bye guys! I'll be back! I promise!!!" I called as I started to sail away.

"Bye! Good Luck!" they called back.

They ship shrunk on the horizon. Soon it and the crew where out of sight. I missed them already but I also knew that what Luffy had said was true. I wasn't there captain anymore, but they were still my nakama. They needed my help. I would save them and then I would return and be married to Luffy.

_Sorry this chapter is so short. This just seemed like a good place to stop. I'll try to do better next time._


	3. Chapter 3:The New Enies Lobby

_Well, I don't think this chapter turned out very well but I'll let you see for yourself. _

_**I don't own One Piece but I wish I did. But I do own Alley so nobody can take her!**_

**Chapter 3**

I had been sailing for two days now. The small boat had been small to start with but now it felt like a tiny prison. I tried to get comfortable by shifting positions for the millionth time. I sighed. There was nothing to do. I feared that if I didn't land soon, I would literally go crazy. I sat up and squinted at the horizon. Nothing. I checked the log pose to make sure I was still going in the right direction. I was. I sighed once again.

I layed back down and stared at the sky. That's when I really began to think about what I was doing. I was getting ready to go to Enies Lobby, a World Government stronghold, on a nearly impossible mission. I was going to break out a group of pirates who had been sentenced to death. And to top it all off, I had been recently given a bounty.

About a month ago, we had been trying to escape a group of marines. The wind had given them an advantage and they were quickly gaining. We were out of cola so we couldn't use the Coup de Burst and we were quickly running out of options. I had jumped into the air using geppou and headed back toward there ships. I had then used rankyaku to sink all three of them and then returned to the ship using geppou. The marines must have reported back to Government headquarters that a pirate had learned their secret teqniques because a week after that, we had recieved a bounty poster. It was mine and I was wanted dead or alive for 200,000,000 berries.

I sat up once again and squinted at the horizon. Suddenly I gasped. I could just make out the outline of what I guessed was the new Enies Lobby and it was huge. "Wow!" I cried.

I quickly made preperations to dock there and go ashore. I packed some supplies into the back pack that Chopper had sent with me and then sat back and waited.

In an hour, I could see that it was going to be impossible to dock. The only ways in were guarded. Suddenly, a sea train went flying by. "That's it!" I cried.

Soon after I had followed the train tracks back to a station and ended up in Water 7. I had my backpack with me and my boat was safely docked in a cove out of sight. Now, the only thing left was to get on that train. I tried to remember everything Nami had told me about the layout of the islands and what Robin had told me about the government. If I remembered right, I wouldn't be able to get on the train heading to Enies Lobby. Besides, it would look to suspicious anyway. I would have to find a way to sneak on.

I looked around. There was a train sitting there that was going to be departing in ten minutes. There were guards at all the possible entrances. If I was going to get on this one, I would have to create a small distraction. I looked at what I had with me. When I found nothing, I sat down on a nereby bench to think. My time was quickly running out. If I used any of my techniques, I would give myself away. "Think harder!" I said quietly to myself. I looked at a rock that was laying by my foot. It gave me and idea. Suddenly, I had my distraction.

I picked up the rock and walked over to the water's edge. I hid behind one of the station's pillars and tossed it in. Just as I had hoped, the nerest guard turned to look. In that split second, I was throught the doors of the train car. I had used soru but not in it's most powerful form, that way I didn't get caught.

I looked around at my new surrondings. "Phew." I sighed as I slumped down onto the floor. Suddenly, I heard footsteps. "Oh great! What now?" I said. I looked around for a hiding place and settled on the storage compartment above the nearest row. I climbed up and set my backpack beside me. Then I closed it just as a guard came walking through. I didn't breathe. I could hear him talking but I couldn't make out what he was saying or who he was talking to. Finally, I heard the guard walk away. I breathed a sigh of relief and tried to get comfortable in my cramped quarters. I felt the train move. "Finally." I said. I settled down and waited till it stopped.

At Enies Lobby

The train came to a stop. I quietly opened the compartment and looked around. The car appeared to be empty so I climbed out and put my backpack on. The doors opened. I flattened myself against the wall. When nobody came I crept quietly over to the open door and looked out. There were some people farther down next to one of the other cars. I decided to risk using soru again. It was the only thing I could think of.

I dashed behind one of the pillars. From there I crept over to the door of the station and slowly opened it. I walked out and shut it quietly behind me. I leaned on the closed door and let out the breath I had been holding. I had made it!!!

I walked out of the station and into the streets of Enies Lobby. It looked alot like the way Robin had described it. I guessed that when they had rebuilt it, they had tried to make it close to the original.The only difference was that the streets were crawling with marines. I slipped into an alley and pulled the map Nami had given me out of my backpack. She had drawn it based on the old Enies Lobby but I guessed that it was still close. I found about where I was. I decided to take the back streets until I got close to the Tower of Justice. I would have to find a way across the large gap but I would figure that out when I got there.

I quickly chose a path and then put the map up. I made my way through the back alleys, avoiding the marines at all costs. Finally, I arrived at what I guessed was the Courthouse. According to Robin, I would have to lower the bridge inside to get to the Tower of Justice. There were guards at the door. I decided I might as well use my techniques now since I was going to be found out eventually anyway.

I ran out infront of them.

"Hey you! No one's supposed to be here!" the first guard yelled. He raised his gun.

"Oh please." I said. I gave a sideways kick. "Rankyaku!" The blue wave rushed at them. The way I had kicked, it went horizontally instead of the usual vertical. It knocked out both of them at once. "Bingo!" I cried. I dashed into the Courthouse. I knew it wouldn't be long until I was discovered. From what Robin had told me, there was a way to lower the drawbridge in here. I had to find it and fast. Nami's map was fairly useless since things inside, unlike the outside, were very different then the original. I ran down corridor after corridor. The place seemed deserted. I didn't pause to think about that.

Suddenly, the hallway I was in ended abruptly. I was standing on a balcony that overlooked the gap between the Courthouse and the Tower of Justice. I didn't pause to think. After the whole incident with the guards I was going to be discovered anyway. "Geppou." I said and jumped off the balcony. It was unnerving to be jumping across a giant gap. I shook off the thought and focused. Soon, I was standing in the doorway of the Tower of Justice.

"That was to easy." I said. I took a deep breath and looked around. There was still no one around and there was no sign that I had been discovered. It seemed to be going great. Maybe they had become careless since the Strawhat's attack, but I doubted it. I pushed open the door.

What I found was a large, but empty, room. I walked cautiously inside. My footsteps echoed and I was sure that anyone within a mile's range could hear me. I was exposed. There was nothing to hide behind.

"Hello?" I finally dared to call out.

"Enter!" a voice boomed. On the other side of the room, the wall slid back to reveal a secret staircase. Light came out of it and flooded the dark room. The voice had come from a Den Den Mushi sitting beside the secret door.

I was starting to get a bad feeling about this. It was almost like I had been expected. But no. That was impossible! Right? I shook it of and entered the hidden passage. The door slid shut behind me.

"I guess the only way to go is forward now." I said to myself. I began climbing the winding staircase.

When I got to about the fifteenth step, it sunk down. "Uh oh." I said.

Suddenly I heard a noise. The passage way trembled and parts of the ceiling began to cave in. I took off running but it was no use. I gritted my teeth in frustration. I knew what I had to do. "Soru!" I yelled. I took off. It wasn't long till I arrived to a place where the passage seemed stable. I sighed and put my hand on the wall. The brick I layed my hand on sunk into the wall and I pulled back my hand in surprise. "What the-" I said but didn't have time to finish my sentence.

The walls started to come together. "Oh come on!" I cried. I started running up the stairs again but I soon realized that I wouldn't make it. I could see the end but the walls were coming to fast. Once again, I was going to be forced to use one of my techniques. "Kami-e!" I yelled. I made myself paper thin and managed to squeeze out of the closing walls.

I went down on my knees and took a deep breath. When I looked up, I could see a door in front of me. I walked to it. It was the only way out and I was ready to get out of this funhouse. This new Tower of Justice was crazy!

I opened the door and stepped into another room. Unlike the first, this one was well lit. There were corridors leading in all different directions. I walked to the center of the room and looked around. I heard a noise behind me and turned around.

A man with odd hair stepped out of what seemed like thin air. He was really tall. And although I had never met him, it was like I knew who he was from somewhere. Suddenly, it came to me. "Blueno. I thought you were dead." I said. Luffy had once told me about this guy. He was the first CP9 member Luffy had defeated.

"Surprised? Well, that doesn't matter. I've been sent to make sure you never leave this room." he said.

_So Blueno survived the Buster Call on Enies Lobby. But what's he doing back?_


	4. Chapter 4:Blueno

_Well, now it's time to see what happens now that Blueno has appeared. Will Alley be alble to break hi tekkai?_

**Chapter 4**

"Good luck with that. I came to save my crew and I won't die until they're free!" I cried.

He seemed slightly amused. There was a small smirk on his face but it wasn't there long. "This shouldn't be to hard. I've seen a little of what you can do and it doesn't look like much. I don't even know if you're a six user."

"Hmph. Do I have to prove myself to you or do you just want to call it quits now? I doubt you are even half as powerful as when you fought Luffy. That was what, five years ago? And the Buster Call must have weakened you a little. Do you honestly think you stand any chance against me? I'm not only a six user but, I'm a master of rokushiki. I can preform rokuougan." I said. But I immediately regretted it after it was out of my mouth. I'd done exactly what he'd wanted me to do. Now he knew the full extent of my abilities. "Oops." I said quietly.

He grinned before going back to his normal expressionless face. "That's all I wanted to know. Oh, and you're wrong. The Buster Call only helped make me stronger. I saved...well, you don't need to know that, considering you won't be around much longer. I've already set my trap. Just look down." he said.

I looked down. "Huh?!" I cried. My feet were stuck in the ground. "What did you do?!"

"Hmm. I guess there is still stuff that you don't know about me. I ate the Doa Doa no Mi. I used it to trap your feet. Now you're stuck and I can do whatever I like." he said. He was now standing directly in front of me. "Tekkai Rin." he said. He kicked one leg into the ground and started to rotate his legs. He started to come toward me at an alarming speed.

I struggled to break free but it was no use and I was running out of time. My only choice was to try and block it with my own tekkai but I was pretty sure it couldn't completely block him out. Still, it would reduce the damage. "Tekkai!" I cried. I tensed up and just in time.

Blueno slammed into me at full speed. My tekkai did reduce the damage but it still hurt. Espcially since I couldn't fall back to soften the blow. My feet where still stuck.

He backed away and released my feet. I sunk to my knees. My whole body hurt. I didn't think anything had been broken, although I wasn't sure. I hated to think of what would have happened if I hadn't used tekkai. Slowly, I stood up.

"So, you really are a six user. I'm impressed that you can still stand. I see I'll have to hit you a bit harder." he said.

"If you can even hit me again." I replied. But really, I was thinking, how could it get any harder then that?!

"If you think I can't, I guess I'll just have to show you." he said.

"Your little trick won't work on me again!" I said. "Geppou!" I jumped into the air. Now atleast he couldn't trap my feet.

Blueno looked bored. "Doa Doa." he said. He opened a kind of door in mid air. He stepped into it and then dissapeared.

I landed back on the ground. "What the? Where did he go? Is that his power?" I questioned out loud.

I heard something above me. I looked up.

"Tekkai Sai!" Blueno said as he kicked off the ceiling and came down toward me fist first.

I dived to the side just before he touched down. The ground shuddered and cracked. I was actually surprised he didn't go through the floor.

"Huh?" I said in surprise. He appeared to be stuck in the ground. Now was my chance! "Rankyaku!!!" I cried and kicked. It headed right toward him.

Right before it hit him, he stood up. "Tekkai." he said.

He was hit with my rankyaku but it didn't seem to bother him at all. He was still standing there completely unharmed.

I didn't hesitate. "Soru." I said. I ran toward him. He didn't move even though I was sure he knew I was coming. "Shigan!" I said and thrust my finger toward his heart. As soon as I made contact, pain racked my whole body. "Yeow!" I cried. I jumped back away from him and examined my finger. I hadn't even broken his skin. His tekkai was strong!

I moved my finger up and down and popped it back into place. "That smarted a bit." I said. My mind was racing. What now? Obviously my normal attacks wouldn't work. I tried to think of something, anything, I could do. I tried to think of evrything I knew about CP9 from the Strawhat's stories. Suddenly an idea that would work came to me. It was something Sanji had told me about his fight with a guy named Jyabura. There was a way to break tekkai. I just needed a way to create friction.

"Doa Doa." he said and opened another door in mid air.

"Not this time!" I cried. "Soru." I ran toward him. "Tekkai!" I yelled. I hardened my fist with tekkai and punched Blueno in the stomach.

The door immediatly closed and he was thrown back part of the way acroos the room. I had caught him off guard and I knew it. He hadn't had time to activate tekkai.

Blueno stood up. He wiped a little blood from the corner of his mouth. "Not bad. But you'll still have to do better." he said.

"I'm just getting started!" I said. "Now, to finish this! Soru!" I cried. I ran around in a large circle.

"What is she doing?" Blueno thought.

Now that I had the friction, it was time to use it. I could already feel the heat in my legs. I stopped and turned to face Blueno. I flipped onto my hands and started spinning my legs, a trick I had learned from Sanji. Finally, I let the energy go. "Rankyaku fire wheel!" I cried. Instead of the usual blue color of rankyaku, it was a firey red. And because I had been spinning, it was in the shape of a spiral.

"Tekkai Gou." Blueno said. He tensed his body but it was no use. The heat from the friction broke right through his tekkai. He was slammed into the wall and was out cold.

"I told you before, I came to rescue my nakama and I won't die until then." I turned my back on him and walked toward the nearest corridor.

_Well, there you have it! Chapter 4. I'm still not that good at writing fight scenes so reviews are appreciated! Thanks!!!_


	5. Chapter 5:Captured!

_Okay. Well, here's chapter 5. I don't really know what else to say._

**Chapter 5**

I thought about what I had just done. I had defeated one of the great CP9 agents. Wow! One who had managed to survive the buster call too. I decided to thank Sanji for telling me how his Diable Jambe worked. He had told me that the if you could build up enough friction, it would create enough heat to break tekkai. I also decided to file that piece of information away so I could avoid heat when using tekkai myself.

By that time I had come to the end of the corridor. In front of me was a large door. On it was a brass door knob in the shape of a pigeon taking flight. "That's odd." I said out loud. I wondered if maybe I should go back and go down one of the other corridors but I decided that I shouldn't waste any more time. I turned the nob and opened the door.

What I found was another room. This one was dimmly lit and there where no windows, just lanterns. I could make out a little bit of furniture in the center of the room. It was a long table and a few chairs. In the corner I could make out the silhouette of a man sitting in one of the chairs.

I crept closer, trying to see who it was and what they were doing. When I was within ten feet, the man spoke up.

"Stop where you are. That's far enough." he said.

I was startled. It wasn't that he had heard me, it was the way he had said what he had said. It had no emotion to it. It was calm, and yet, he was ordering me to stop. I froze but then realized that this might be a good oppurtunity to attack. Even if he had heard me coming, that didn't mean he could stop me.

"Soru." I said quietly and ran toward him. He did't move. I grinned. This would be easier then I thought. I decided to use shigan and stab him through the heart. I would do it from the back so he would never see it coming. "Shigan." I said.

Just as I was about to hit him, his arm came up and caught me by the neck. Once I realized what had happened, I brought my hands up to try and pull his hand free. I tried but I couldn't budge it. "How?" I managed to choke out.

"I'm impressed by your skill, but you're still no match for me. However, the government needs a favor from you. Otherwise, I would just kill you right now.

I stuggled even harder. "Just give me back my nakama!" I cried.

"Nakama. Hmm...how amusing. I haven't heard anyone say that in a long time. Not since your husband to be said it actually." he said.

"What?! How did you...?" I cried.

"I've been keeping my eye on his entire crew, including you. Now, back to business. I have been sent to ask you to do the government a favor." he replied.

The whole time we had been talking, he used that same emotionless voice. He still had me by the throat and I was starting to find it difficult to breathe. "I would...never do the...government a favor! I'm...a pirate...and I will be...to the death! I'd never be...a government dog!!!" I managed to choke out.

"A person in your position shouldn't say such foolish things." he said. And with that he brought his arm forward and slammed me into the wall in front of him.

I rubbed my head and found that I had a small bump there. I sat up in the small hole I had created. When the dust cleared I looked up. The man was now standing and a pigeon had landed on his shoulder.

"Now, are you ready to talk?" he asked calmly.

I squinted through the dim light. He had thick blace hair and when I saw his eyes, I sunk back into the wall. They were the most cruel eyes I had ever seen. And yet, his face showed no sign of emotion. "What do you want with me and my former crew?" I asked.

"Your former crew? I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about." he replied.

"What?! It was in the paper! They were sentenced for death!! They're being held here!!! How could you not know?!!" I cried.

I saw a slight smirk on his face. It was there for a moment, but then it was gone and he was back to his normal emotionless face. "Oh. That former crew. Are those the nakama you came to save? Well, you won't find them here. They are out there somewhere, roaming the seas." he said.

"But...how!" I cried. "The paper said-" but he cut me off.

"Your paper said." he replied.

Suddenly I realized what had happened. Somehow, the government had sent us fake information to get me here. "What do you want from me?!" I asked.

"Just a little favor. Nothing much. But for now, you need to rest." he said.

"What do-" but I didn't have time to say anything else. The last thing I saw was his foot coming at me. Then, everything went dark.

Back on Thousand Sunny:One Day Later

"Luffy!" Nami yelled as she pounded on the mens quarter's door. "Hurry up and open this door!"

"Huh?" Luffy asked with a yawn. He was standing in the doorway and he looked like he was still asleep.

"Look at this! You won't believe it!" she cried. She was out of breath.

Luffy woke up a little. "Nami, what's wrong?" he asked.

She shoved the newest paper in his face. "Just read this! The pelican just brought it." she said in reply.

He took the paper and began reading. His face grew troubled, a rare thing for Luffy. "How? How could this happen?" he asked.

"Luffy I'm sorry but she just wasn't strong enough to-" but Luffy cut her off.

"She is strong enough! You've seen what she can do! Don't say things that aren't true!!!" Luffy yelled.

Nami looked at him. She had never seen Luffy this way. "Luffy, things happen that we can't help. This is one of them. She wouldn't let anyone go with her! Enies Lobby isn't a place you can just walk into and release condemed pirates!!! You've been there!!! You know these things! So don't yell at me!!! It's not my fault!!! It's nobodies fault!!!!" Nami cried and then walked away.

Luffy stood there, watching her go. He dropped the paper and shut the door. "Zoro! Get up." he said.

Zoro yawned. "What is it Luffy? And why so early?" he asked.

"We're going to Enies Lobby." he said.

"What?!!!" Zoro cried, waking up the rest of the cabin.

"Would you keep it down crap swordsman?! We're trying to sleep!" Sanji yelled.

Chopper yawned and rubbed his eyes. "What's going on?" he asked.

"That's what I want to know." Usopp replied.

"Why does this keep happening?" Kohza groaned.

"Because it does." Franky said.

"Guys! It's not me! Our captain wants to go to Enies Lobby!" Zoro exclaimed.

"What?! Luffy, have you lost it?!!!" Sanji cried.

"He never had it." Usopp said which made Chopper giggle.

"There are no questions. We're going there and that's final. Captain's orders." he said.

"What's gotten into him?" Zoro asked.

"Something big. Luffy's never serious." Sanji replied.

"But why, Luffy?" Usopp asked.

Luffy didn't reply for a while. Then, he slowly began to speak. "Once again, they have somebody I want to protect. Once again, they've taken my nakama away from me. And once again, I'm going to clobber them."

"Who? Who do they have?!" Chopper asked.

"The only one of us who's not here." Sanji replied.

"Oh. Alley." Chopper said.

The cabin was silent. Luffy walked over and sat down on his hammock. His hat was pulled down and it cast a shadow over his eyes.

"Then what are we waiting for?! Let's go! Our nakama is in trouble!" Chopper cried.

Everyone looked at him and then slowly turned there heads to look at Luffy.

He raised his head up. They could see his eyes now. "You heard the doctor. Let's go!" he said.

"Aye!" they all cried.

They all got up. Sanji went of to cook breakfast. Zoro went to keep watch. Franky and Usopp went to create new weopons for Sunny. Kohza went to find Vivi and Chopper went to make sure he had enough medicines and supplies.

Luffy watched them all go. He continued sitting there until eventually he sighed and layed down.

A few minutes later, Nami walked by in the hallway. She spotted the open door and looked inside. When she saw Luffy laying there, she walked over to him. "Are you okay?" she asked.

He looked up at her without a word. Then he silently looked back down.

Nami looked at him a few minutes. He was upset and for a good reason. Nami decided it was best to leave him alone. Before she walked out she said, "I've set a course to Enies Lobby. We'll be there by late this afternoon." Then she walked out, leaving Luffy alone.

_Luffy's upset. Alley's captured. What next?_


	6. Chapter 6:Friends in New Places

_Okay. I don't really like how this chapter turned out but that's because Impel Down has never been shown. And about adding Bon Kurei in there...just don't ask._

**Chapter 6**

I woke up with a pounding headache and jaw was sore. I sat up and looked around. I appeared to be in some sort of dim jail cell. I looked down and realized that I had been laying on a white cot of some kind. "Where am I?" I wondered out loud.

"So, you're finally awake." a voice said from the other side of the jail cell.

I quickly looked over to where the voice had come from, which only caused my head to hurt worse. I now noticed that there was a person sitting on the other side of the cell. They were sitting on a cot identical to mine. "Hello?" I called out to them.

"Why are you here, kid?" they asked.

"Hey! I'm no kid! I'm 21!" I cried. "But I'm in here for..." suddenly I remebered everything that had happened. "Wait! Where am I?"

"You're in Impel Down. The biggest government prison. Why are you here?" they asked again.

"Wait a second! Why are you asking me all these questions? Who are you?!" I said.

"I'm Bon Kurei. Former Baroque Works member and a wonderful ballet dancer. But wait, you never told me who you were or why you're here." he replied.

"Ugh. We're getting nowhere fast. Hey, wait a minute! Did you just say Bon Kurei? You were Mr.2! You worked for Crocodile until Sanji kicked your butt!" I cried.

"Sanji? How do you know that name?" he asked.

"I know the Strawhat crew! Everybody does! There captain is the Pirate King!!! And I'm...one of them. My name is Alley." I finished.

"So Luffy's king? I'm not surprised. I'm happy. They were my friends. Hold on! Did you say you're a Strawhat?" he asked.

"Well, yeah. I joined three years ago. So they're your friends?" I replied.

"Of course! I almost joined their crew in Alabasta but I ended up sacraficing myself to the marines so they could get away. I never thought I would see one of them here. I'm honored." he said.

"Um...thanks." I replied.

"You never did tell me why you're here." he said.

"Oh! I'm sorry. It's sort of a long story but since it looks like we have no where to go, I'll tell you." I said. "It all started five years ago. Luffy did me a favor but I couldn't join him then. I was the captain of my own crew that I had to take care of so we promised to meet again someday. So after he bacame king, I found him and finally took him up on his offer to join his crew. Then, about a month ago, I recieved a bounty of 200,000,000 berries."

Here he interrupted. "Wow. That's an impressive bounty. How'd you get that?" he asked.

"I know some of the governments secret rokushiki techniques and I used them to sink a few of their ships. I guess they saw me as a threat. Anyway, then about three or four days ago, I'm not sure how many days have gone by exactly, we got a newspaper delivered by a pigeon. It said that my old crew had been captured and was sentenced to death. It said they were being held here but now..." I sighed.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Now I found out that was a lie. When I first got to Enies Lobby, I found a way into the Tower of Justice. Soon after I entered there, I got into a fight with one of the CP9 agents, if that's what they're still called, named Blueno. I won that fight. Then, in the next room, I met a man. I don't know who he was but he told me that those papers were fake and that my friends were never captured in the first place. I tried to fight him but I couldn't land a blow. It's like he knew what I was going to do. Then he knocked me out and then I was here."

He didn't say anything.

"By the way, how long have I been out?" I asked.

"They brought you here sometime last night. It's morning now." he replied.

"Thanks." I said.

We sat in silence for a minute. My head and jaw were feeling better now. Finally, he broke the silence. "Okay. I've decided something. I'm going to help you. I like you and I like your friends." he said.

"Wow! Thanks! But how are you going to help me?" I asked, puzzled.

"Okay. Listen here..." he said and went on to describe his plan.

Later that Morning

When the guard came with breakfast, we were ready.

"Oh!" I groaned as I lay on the cot.

"What's wrong with her?" the guard asked Bon Kurei.

"I don't know. She hasn't said anything but her jaw looks swollen. I think it might be broken." he replied.

"Oh great!" the guard said as he set the breakfast on the ground and walked over to me. "He went to far this time. We needed this girl to-" but he didn't get to finish. As soon as he had bent over to look at me, I had acted.

"Shigan!" I said as I stuck my finger in his chest. I didn't hit his heart but I came close enough to knock him out. I jumped up and then bent over and began searching. I found his keys and walked over to the cell door.

Before I was able to touch the door, Bon Kurei grabbed my arm. "Wait! You don't have a devils fruit, do you?" he asked.

"No. Why?" I asked.

"That door is made of seastone, just like these walls." he replied.

"Thanks for thinking of that." I said. I stuck the keys in the door and opened it.

"You better hurry! The other guards will be here soon!" Bon Kurei warned.

"Aren't you coming with me?" I asked.

He smiled a sad smile. "No. I'll stay here and cover for you." he replied.

"Thanks for everything. I won't forget you!" I said. And with that, I closed the door and dropped the keys in front of it. Then I took off running down the hall. I didn't look back because if I did, I would go back, and that was one thing I couldn't do.

_So, how was it? Strange, I know. Well, please review!_


	7. Chapter 7:Escape!

_Now that Alley's escaped her cell, where will she go?_

**Chapter 7**

In the Tower of Justice

"Sir, a criminal has escaped from their cell! We just got word from the guards over there. It's the one from the Strawhat crew!" a marine cried.

"Where is she now?" a man asked. He allowed his pigeon to sit on his shoulder.

"Somewhere in Impel Down, sir." the marine replied.

"Then don't open the Gates of Justice. No one has ever escaped Impel Down." the man ordered.

"Yes sir!" the marine said. He saluted and then left.

"So, she's escaped. I knew this would happen. Now it's time to continue with my plan." he said.

In Impel Down

I ran down corridor after corridor. This place seemed to never end. I saw criminals, mostly pirates I guessed, from all different parts of the Grand Line and the entire world. Some of the cells I passed were empty, while others were filled to the brink of exploding. When I came to what seemed to be an empty corridor, I paused to catch my breath. I could hear the footsteps of the guards closing in and I knew it wouldn't be long until they were here. I began to run again.

"Hey you! Wait!" I heard someone call from one of the cells.

I immediately came to a halt and turned around. I had assumed I was alone but now I realized that there was indead someone in these cells. I walked in the direction of the voice and finally found the cell that appeared to be occupied. I squinted through the bars and saw someone sitting in the corner. "Hello?" I called out.

"You. You're the one they're after." he stated. "You escaped. Now you've got to get me out of here too."

"Why would I help you? I don't even know who you are." I replied. "I've got to go. The guards will be here soon." I turned to go.

All of a sudden, the man reached out and grabbed my arm. I felt chills rack my spine but I had no idea why. "Get me out of here." he said.

"Why should I?!" I cried.

"You don't know who I am do you? I'll show you why you need to let me out." he said. I felt my arm starting to shrival up.

"Ah!" I cried and jerked my arm out of his grip. I looked at it only to discover that it had been dried out. "How did you...what did you...how?!" I finally managed to say .

"I ate the devils fruit and that's only a taste of what I can do. If you want to fix your arm, you can have this glass of water but you can only have that when you let me out." he replied.

"But how did you do that?! These walls are made of seastone! They should have stopped you!" I exclaimed.

"I have mastered my devil fruit far past anyone else. Seastone does not limit my abilities. Now, let me out." he said.

"No. I know who you are now. I can't believe I didn't realize it before. Luffy told me about you." I said.

"Strawhat?!" he asked in amazement.

"You're Sir Crocodile, aren't you? You were a former shichibukai until they figured out your Baroque Works scheme. I wouldn't let you go even if it's for that glass of water over there." I said.

Suddenly, some of the guards burst around the far corner. "I've gotta go. See ya." I said.

Don't let her get away!" one of the guards cried.

I heard gunfire. I sped up and made it around the other corner, unharmed.

"Idiot! Don't kill her!" I heard one of the guards cry.

"That's odd." I said. But I didn't dwell on it. I kept on running. "How the heck do you get out of here!" I cried in frustration.

I turned another corner and there was the main guard station. "Finally." I muttered.

"Where do you think you're going?" a guard asked.

"Um...nowhere." I said. I mentally kicked myself for not noticing him before.

"That's what I thought. You're the one they're after." he said. "And I'll be the one to catch you." That's when he noticed my arm. "So, you met Crocodile?" he said with a grin. "Well, this should be easy."

He was now standing in front of me.

"Bring it on!" I cried. "I'll still win. How about we make this interesting. If I win, you open the Gates of Justice. If you win, you get the reward for capturing a dangerous criminal."

"Agreed." he said with a grin.

This guy looked like no threat so I figured I was home free now. All I had to do was take this guy out.

He aimed a kick at my throat. He was a lot faster then I had originally anticipated but I still had time to block his attack by holding up my good arm. Then, I kicked with my foot and hit him in the stomach. He slid back a little but then came at me full speed. He was alot faster then I had thought and before I knew it, he had punched me in the stomach and I hit the wall.

I stood up and dusted off. "You're not a bad fighter but now it's time I won. I'm sort of in a hury. Rankyaku!" I said and kicked. There was a flah of blue that headed toward the guard but he jumped to the side right before it hit him.

"So you really can preform the rokushiki techniques. I'm impressed. But you still won't beat me." he said.

"Rankyaku!" I cried and kicked sideways, causing it to go horizontally instead of vetically.

The guard just jumped it with a little laugh. "I'm faster then you thought, huh? You didn't anticipate a mere guard knowing how to preform soru. Why do you think no one ever escapes this prison?" he said with a slight chuckle. He was obviously pleased with his self.

"Soru?!" I gasped. "Hmm..." I had suddenly had an idea. He could dodge to the side and he could dodge up or down, but without knowing geppou, he could never dodge both ways at once. "Rankyaku cross!" I yelled and kicked first up and then sideways, forming a cross shaped rankyaku. Just as I thought, he couldn't dodge it. It hit him and that ended that.

He wasn't quite knocked out but he was close. "Ha! I win. Now, open the gates. A deal's a deal." I said.

"Uhhh." he groaned.

"Oops. I guess I went to hard on him." I said. I entered the guard station and looked around but the only thing in there was a Den Den Mushi. "He tricked me!" I cried. "Wait a second! I'll just use the Den Den Mushi."

I went over and picked up the end to talk into. I played with the buttons until I finally heard a voice.

"Hello? Hello!" it said.

I thought quickly. "Um...this is the guard station at Impel Down. We need the Gates of Justice opened to allow more marines over here! We need backup!" I cried, trying to sound convincing.

A minute later, they answered. "We're opening the gates now. Reinforcements are on the way." Then they hung up.

I stood around in the guards station for a few minutes. Then I heard footsteps coming toward the main doors. They burst open and about a hundred marines burst through the door.

I used geppou and jumped over there heads before they even knew I was there. Once I was outside the doors, I found myself on a large staircase. I quickly ran up them before they closed the gates.

What I found when I got to the top was a bridge. If I remembered Nami's map right, this was the Bridge of Hesitation, the last thing a criminal sees before they are taken to Impel Down. "Wow. So this is where Robin said she was when the Strawhat's rescued her. Now I see why she changed her mind." I said quietly. The bridge was long with no rails on the side. Just a straight drop to the long pit below. I shuddered before coming back to reality when I heard the sound of the Gates of Justice closing behind me.

Now I was faced with a new problem. What to do about my dried up arm. I looked around. There was the drop below me, but in the distance were the waterfalls surronding Enies Lobby. I took a deep breath. I knew what to do and I didn't want to but it was the only way. I jumped into the air using geppou and made my way over to the waterfalls. I ran my arm through it as I kept jumping through the air. Then I quickly made my way back to the bridge and collapsed. My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest. The whole experiance had been unnerving but atleast my arm was fixed.

I stood up and brushed myself off. My breathing had returned to normal and my heart had calmed down a little. I made my way to the far side of the bridge. There were no guards here. I was guessing that they were all in Impel Down looking for me.

I began running again. I ran away from the Gates of Justice and Impel Down. If I made it out of this, I would be the only person to ever escape Impel Down. That would be a big accomplishment. And since they didn't have my crew, I was now free to go.

I reached the large doors on the other side. I hardened my fist using tekkai and knocked it open. The passageway went down and I guessed it went underwater. This had also been on Nami's map and if her map was right, which I'm sure it was, then it would take me straight to the Tower of Justice. I began running again and all I could think was that every step I took brought me closer to freedom and to Luffy.

On Thousand Sunny

"Luffy!" Nami yelled as she ran down the stairs toward the men's cabin. She reached the door and started pounding on it. "Luffy!!!"

Luffy opened the door. He was alone in the room. Everybody had been avoiding him and he had stayed in his cabin the whole day.

"We're here." she said.

He seemed to brighten a little and some of his spirit immediately returned. "Really?" he asked with a small smile.

"You better get ready. We're following the sea train in. We'll dock in about ten minutes." she said and walked off.

Luffy smiled and then chased after her. "Hey Nami! Wait up! I'm coming!" he called.

She smiled. Luffy was finally back.

_Well, that chapter was longer then I thought. I don't know how good it was so, please review!_


	8. Chapter 8:Rob Lucci

_Alley has escaped from Impel Down but her problems have just begun. _

_**This chapter contains spoilers from the Enies Lobby arc!**_

**Chapter 8**

I was now somewhere in the Tower of Justice. I had come out of the tunnel and ran in the direction of what I thought was the way out. I now realized that getting out of here wasn't going to be so easy. I had been avoiding guards and running down endless passageway after passageway. Some I had even found hidden in the walls! What was with this place?

I stopped. I needed to find a room with windows to see if I could find out where I was. I dodged a few more guards and then slipped into a room that appeared to be unguarded.

I was immediately dissapointed. There were no windows. It was just a lantern lit room and it didn't take me long to figure out that this room would be of no help to me. No wonder it hadn't been guarded. I turned around and twisted the doorknob only to finf that it wouldn't budge. I pulled harder but it still wouldn't open.

"Having trouble?" I heard a voice say behind me.

I felt a chill run down my spine as I recognized the voice. It was the same one who had knocked me out and told me that I had been tricked.

I slowly turned around. "Why did you bring me here?" I asked.

"I told you before, the government needs you." he replied calmly. It was spooky how he managed to show no emotion.

"If you need me so bad, then why did you send me to Impel Down?" I demanded.

"You still had to much spirit. You acually believed you could defeat me. I had to show you that there was no escape so that you will do what we ask." he said.

"Why should I?! I already told you I would never help you!!!" I cried.

"You shouldn't be so sure. Are you willing to stake your life on it?" he asked.

"Like you could actually kill me!!!" I replied.

"Very well. Then are you willing to stake someone else's life on it?" he asked calmly.

"Huh? Who?" I said.

"Your husband to be." he replied.

"Is nothing private anymore?!" I exclaimed.

He gazed at me calmly.

"Besides, how could you kill him? He's the Pirate King! He survived a Buster Call!!! So how do you expect to kill him?!!" I asked.

"He isn't the only one to have survived a Buster Call." he replied. "You still don't know who I am do you?"

"You...survived a Buster Call?" I choked out, shocked.

He ignored the question and continued. "I'm guessing he hasn't told you about me yet? I'm surprised he hasn't mentioned the person who came close to killing him."

"What?!" I cried.

"I am Rob Lucci. I was the leader of CP9 and I came very close to killing Strawhat Luffy. But that's in the past. This time I won't come close, I will kill him." he said.

"Lucci! But...but...how?!!!" I cried. Everything I knew about CP9 was coming back. I should have realized who he was a long time ago. Maybe it could have saved me. But now, it was to late. I had walked into whatever trap he had set. "You're supposed to be dead!"

"The man you faught earlier, Blueno, he was defeated by Luffy long before I was. He regained consciousness and used his devil fruit ability to save most of us. We are the only ones to have returned. Now do you realize just how bad your situation is? You will accept this job or the person you love will die." he said.

"You can't kill him! You tried before and failed! So what can you do now?" I asked.

"I had a chance to observe him up close in our last fight. I know what he can do. I will kill him with this." Lucci said. He pulled something out of his pocket and held it up. It was a small, oblong, silver bullet.

I gave a small laugh. "That thing? You said you've seen what he can do and you still expect to kill him with that?!!" I said in amazement.

"I wouldn't be laughing. I told Vegapunk everything I knew about Luffy and he developed this. It has a razor sharp tip that can cut through rubber. Once inside the skin, it will open up a compartment that contins more blades, each with a seastone tip. They will embed in the skin, making it nearly impossible to remove without causing serious damage. But I don't intend to let them get that far. It will be a straight shot to the heart, where it will instantly kill him." he explained.

I stared at the small bullet. I was beginning to see just how serious this situation was. "But...but how will you get close enough to hit him? He'll notice you before you ever get close enough." I said.

"I thought of that. Blueno, you may enter." he said.

A door opened in mid air and Blueno stepped out.

"I've thought of everything. There is no way for you to win." Lucci said. "Blueno would have shot him before he was ever aware of his presence. Now, are you ready to listen to what we need you to do?"

I sighed and looked down at the floor. I knew there was no way out if I wanted Luffy to live. "Okay. What do you want?" I finally replied.

Lucci nodded at Blueno and handed him the bullet. Blueno exited the room through aother door. "He's become usefull over these years. He's been an excelent spy. He's kept an eye on you and the rest of the strawhat's. He has told me everything about all of you. I know all of you're weaknesses and stregths and I know what will create your ultimate downfall. I brought you here using your weakness. One you share with that Strawhat. It's what you call nakama. I knew you would come here if you thought they were in danger. So I sent my pigeon, Hattori, to deliver a fake newpaper to you saying they were being held here and were sentenced to death." he explained.

"But why?!" I asked.

"You see, ever since he became Pirate King, there has been an offset of power in the world. The pirates have been slowly overtaking the government. Not enough to make a noticible difference but it is still a problem. The power should be shifting in our direction, not yours. And so, the Five Elder Stars called on me and Blueno to distroy you and Luffy. We have been watching all of you for the past three years. We know everything. And we know how to destroy the pirates rise to power. We must capture their king. But it took us forever to figure out his weakness. Do you want to know what that weakness is?" he asked.

"What?! A weakness?! Luffy has none!" I cried.

"I wouldn't be so sure. His weakness is a person he is very close to. Someone he would die for. And that person is-" he said but I finished for him.

"Me." I said quietly, finally realizing that I was defeated.

"So, are you ready to hear your part in all of this?" he asked.

"Yes." I replied quietly.

"As I mentioned, we need to capture the Pirate King and his only weakness is you. As we speak, he is searching for you in this very tower. Our guards are forcing him closer and closer to a room made entirely of seastone. That is where you will go and meet him. I will explain what you are to tell him shortly. But if you refuse, or try to run away once I let you out of this room, I will give the order for Blueno to kill him. Once he is in the room made of seastone, he will be powerless anyway. So, will you do it? Not that you really have a choice. Because, I discovered another weakness you have. Him. You will do anything to ensure his safety." he said.

"You promise you won't harm him?" I asked.

"As long as you do what I ask of you. Once you are done, you are free to stay here. You may not leave but you will not be harmed either." he said.

"Okay." I finally agreed after I had thought about it a moment. I knew I had no choice. "What do you want me to do?"

"I'm glad you finally came around." he said and then explained what I was to do. With each word he spoke, my heart grew heavier and the more I wished for a way out of this. There was no way I could do what he asked. But I had to, didn't I?

_Sorry that this chapter wasn't more exciting but I had to put it in here to explain some things. Anyway, what does Lucci want from Alley?_


	9. Chapter 9:Broken Trust

_What is Lucci's plan for Alley? Will she do it or will she blow it and get Luffy killed?_

**Chapter 9**

I walked down the hallway with heavy footsteps. I didn't want to do this, but I had to or Luffy wold die. I was now standing infront of a large door. Inside, Luffy was looking for a way out of the room. As long as he hadn't touched the walls, he would still be standing. His sandals would protect him for now. I took a deep breath and tried to prepare myself, even though nothing could prepare me for this. I made my face look serious and assumed a relaxed gate, like I belonged here. I pushed open the door. "Hello Luffy." I said in a casual yet serious tone.

"Hey! I came to rescue you! I heard that you had been captured! I'm glad you're all right!" he said. He had a big smile on his face. Why did he have to make this so hard?!!

"Captured? I wasn't captured! Oh wait. No one's told you yet, have they? Poor naive Luffy." I said, almost mockingly.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his smile slightly faded. "The paper said so. I came to take you back with us."

"Why would I go back with you? Don't you get it! I wasn't captured and I don't want to go back!" I cried. I was on the verge of breaking, but if I did, Blueno would kill him. That's what I kept telling myself.

"Huh? But...but you're part of my crew! Why wouldn't you come back? " he asked. His smile was gone now.

I walked over to him and got very close to his face. "Look what you're standing on Luffy. There is a reason you're in this room." I said coldly and with that I grabbed his shirt and threw him to the ground. He was now in contact with the seastone. His strength immediatly began to drain.

"Now listen to me and listen close. I'm not part of your crew and I never was. I only pretended to be your nakama. When we met five years ago, I was working for the government. After you destroyed the original Enies Lobby and CP9, the government wanted a way to take you out. So, they sent me to create a weakness for you. Me. I spent five years getting closer to you and getting to know you. All the while, I was planning your downfall. You have caused a large amount of trouble for the government ever since the CP9 incident. Now it's time to execute you and end this age of pirates. When the government realized that you were getting to close to me, they created a way for me to escape. They sent fake papers saying my old "crew" had been captured. They were also government agents by the way. I returned here, knowing you would follow me. I have trapped you in this room and there will be no escaping." I said. I took out the pair of seastone cuffs Lucci had given me and attached them to Luffy's wrists. On the inside, my heart felt like it was dead.

"But...I thought...I thought you loved me. I thought you were my nakama." he said weakly.

"Oh please. Do you know how many jobs have required me to say I loved someone? You aren't the first. I have no feelings for you. I never loved you. Don't you get it! You trust people to easily, Luffy. Calling them your nakama before you even know them! You still haven't learned the ways of the world and now, it's to late. You're a dead man." I said. I took his hat and stepped on it. He gasped but didn't stir. I picked it up and with that, I walked out of the room, leaving Luffy lying helpless on the floor. I knew I had crushed him because it had crushed me too. As the doors closed, I could already feel the warm tears running down my cheeks. I had saved him but at what cost? Love came with a price and it had been my turn to pay it. "I'm sorry." I said quietly and slipped off down the dark hallway, clutching his hat.

"That went well. And I see you even got his hat. You did better then I thought. You may be usefull to us after all. But for now, Blueno." he said. Blueno walked out from behind the corner. "Escort her to her room."

"What!?!" I cried as Blueno grabbed me. "Let go!!! Lucci, you said I couldn't leave but you never said I would be locked up!"

"I lied. Besides, I couldn't have you interfering in the death of your dearly beloved." he replied.

"You promised you wouldn't harm him!!! I did what you said now let him go!!!!!" I screamed. I struggled to break free of Blueno's grasp but failed. Luffy's hat was tied around my neck, using the string that was on it.

"Did you honestly think that I would just let him go?" Lucci asked.

I was to stunned to say anything. In an instant, things had gone from bad to worse and the thing I hated most was that Luffy would die thinking I hated him.

Lucci started to walk away. "Hey! Lucci, take this with you. It seems to be important to the girl, the way she was clutching it earlier." Blueno said.

Before I knew what was happening, Blueno had ripped the string holding Luffy's hat and had tossed the hat to Lucci. "NO!!!!" I screamed, but it was no use.

Lucci looked down at the hat. "I'll dispose of this." he said and began to walk off.

"NOOO!!!!" I cried. "No." I said in one last desperate attempt. I could feel the tears returning but this time I didn't fight them. I would have sank to my knees but Blueno held me up.

"Time to go." he said.

This time I didn't resist. I had nothing left. There was no fight in me. I had lost everything. The man I loved and his treasured strawhat. My friends. Everything I cared about was gone. I went limp and allowed him to drag me to my room of a prison.

Lucci walked down the hallway toward the room where Luffy was still laying on the floor. He still carried the strawhat in one hand. With the other, he pushed open the large doors. "Strawhat Luffy, we meet again." he said.

"Uh...what?" Luffy said weakly. The seastone was already draining his strength and he didn't have the will to stand up anymore. He was barely conscious.

"It wasn't very smart to touch the floor. That's why I'm wearing shoes and being carefull what I touch. It's a shame really. To see the famous Pirate King in this state. I was expecting more." Lucci said in a mocking tone.

Luffy remained silent. He was facing away from Lucci.

"Hm." Lucci said. He walked over to Luffy. "I've been waiting for you Strawhat. I owe you for what you did to me five years ago, so here is what you get." Lucci said. He then kicked Luffy as hard as he could in the head. Luffy went tumbling into the wall.

"That's only the start." Lucci said. "I won't kill you right away. I want to make sure you suffer." With that said, he began to walk but then stopped and turned around. "I'm sure you don't want this old thing. It's worn out. I'll take care of it for you." he said. And with that, he made his hand into a leopards paw and stuck his claws into Luffy's hat.

Luffy gritted his teeth and jerked slightly but didn't say anything.

"I'll just take care of this for you. I'm sure you won't mind if anything happens to it." Lucci said with a cruel smile. Then he walked out of the room, shutting the doors and leaving Luffy to suffer in silence.

_Luffy's captured and his spirit has finally been broken. What can Alley do to save him?_


	10. Chapter 10:Last Chance

_So, will Lucci kill Luffy? Or will Alley find a way to stop him?_

**Chapter 10**

I sat on the bed staring at the wall. The room was nicely furnished but I didn't care about that. All I wanted was to wake up and for this nightmare to be over.

I layed down and closed my eyes with a deep sigh and tried to sort out all the mixed thoughts and emotions that were going through my head. To my surprise, the emotion I slowly began to focus on was anger. I started to think about what Lucci had done to me and what he was going to do to Luffy. And the more I concentrated on that anger, the more my will to stand came back. With in minutes, I had gone from someone feeling sorry for themself to someone ready to fight.

I stood up, furious. I looked at the door. It was the only thing that stood between me and freedom. I knew it had been specially made so that it couldn't be knocked down with rokushiki techniques. That's when I noticed a vent slightly to the left of the door frame. I could reach it using geppou. I jumped up there while using tekkai to harden my fist and smashed the vent cover, hoping it hadn't made to much noise. I slipped into it and started crawling.

It wasn't very comfortable and if I even breathed, I was sure someone would here me. I pressed on though and I soon heard voices. I paused at an opening in the vent. I looked at the room below before pressing my ear against the opening.

"Has the Buster Call been activated yet?" I heard Lucci ask. He was in the room I had first encountered him in. Luffy's hat lay on a nereby chair.

"Just as you requested but are you sure it will work? They escaped last time." I heard a voice say, which I was pretty sure was Blueno. A quick glance confirmed this.

"I'm sure it will work. It will catch them completely offguard. They don't think that we know they are here. They also don't have their captain. It will be an easy job." Lucci replied.

"They didn't have their captain last time. And now there are more of them and they are all more powerfull." Blueno said.

"The last Buster Call was foolishly set in motion by that idiot Spandam and it was set for Enies Lobby. This time it is aimed for Thousand Sunny, their latest ship. The Buster ships won't stop until the ship and it's crew are dead. Their captain will witness their distuction and then we will hold him a public execution. Then, we will capture the yonkou while they are mourning the loss of their king. After that, we will use the shichibukai to capture the no name pirates and then finally, the World Government will have complete and total control of this world. And just as the Five Elder Stars promised, I will be the new world's king." Lucci said.

I held in a gasp. My eyes went wide in shock. Lucci king?!! And the Five Elder Stars were involved in this. Suddenly the realization of just how big this whole thing was struck me. I tried to steady my breathing so they wouldn't hear me. I had to find Luffy and fast or his crew would be destroyed!

Suddenly a nereby Den Den Mushi crackled to life. "Lucci, Blueno, the Five Elder Stars request your presence immediately. Please report to the top floor. Over."

"We're on our way." Lucci replied. He and Blueno then left the room.

I sat frozen where I was. I couldn't believe what I had overheard and the worst thing was, I was the only one who knew. I was the only one who could stop this nightmarish world from becoming a reality. I had to find Luffy! But I couldn't leave without his hat.

I opened the vent cover as quietly as I could and jumped down into the room. I landed near the Den Den Mushi. I walked over to the bed and picked up Luffy's hat. It had holes in it. From what, I didn't know. I then turned my attention to the broken string and tied the loose ends together and slipped it around my neck. I gave it a slight jerk. When I was satisfied that it would hold, I used geppou and made my way back into the vent. I tried to put the cover back on but found it impossible from the inside. I set it aside and continued to crawl through the vent.

When I was above a hallway, I took that cover off and slipped quietly to the ground. I looked around but found, much to my relief, that I was alone. But now I was faced with a new problem. I had no idea where they were holding Luffy. He could be in Impel Down for all I knew.

I looked up and down the hallway. There were doors up and down the whole length of it. I decided to go to my right.

As I made my way down the hall, I stopped to listen at each door. Most of them seemed either deserted or occupied by one or two marines. I reached the next hallway and walked down it, doing the same thing with the same results.

When I was about to give up, I saw a guarded door at the end of the latest hallway. Curious, I used soru to get closer.

"Hey! No one's allowed in this area!" the guard on the left called out.

I decided to play dumb and use a little female charm. "I'm sorry. I was just looking for my boyfriend, but you'll do." I said.

I saw him blush slightly. "I'm sorry miss, but I'm sort of busy-" but he never got to finish.

"Rankyaku!" I yelled and kicked. It hit him and sent him flying back into the wall where he lay still.

Now for the other one. He had already pulled out his weapon. Just as he was about to shoot, I used soru to get right in front of him. Then I punched him in the jaw and he joined his partner in the whole lying still department. I grinned. Perfect!

I walked up to the door but found it locked. I walked over to the unconcious guards and checked there many pockets until I found what I was looking for. A key. I put it in the lock on the door and it easily came open.

I found myself in a large, yet empty, room. The only thing interesting was the room was it's many pillars. It was fairly well lit and as I gazed around, my eyes fell upon a cage in the corner of the room. I could see someone lying on the floor of it. I took a deep breath and made my way across the room to the cage.

As I neared the cage, I could see Luffy. He was facing the wall and away from me. Seeing him made me feel miserable. I had betrayed him. "Luffy?" I asked nervously.

He didn't stir.

"Luffy...please. Listen to me." I begged.

He still didn't move.

I looked at him and felt tears but I quickly wiped them away. I had to get his attention somehow. "Luffy, you have to listen to me. Your crew will die if you don't get out of here." I said in a desperate attempt.

He struggled and finally sat up. I could now see that he still had on the seastone cuffs which was probably why he was so weak. The cage also appeared to be made of seastone. He didn't turn around. I doubted he had the strength to.

"Why are you here?" he asked coldly.

I bit my lip. This was more painful then I had expected. "I came to warn you. I came to get you out of here. Just please listen to me!" I cried.

"Why should I?" he replied.

I cringed. Why did he have to make this so hard? "It...I didn't...I never wanted...it wasn't my fault. Lucci, he plans to kill you. He promised me that you would be safe if I betrayed you. He promised to let you go. But now...Luffy, he lied. He's going to kill you. And now he's activated the Buster Call with Thousand Sunny as the target. Your crew will die! You have to go now!" I cried desperately.

"Why should I believe you? You lied to me. You used me. Why should I listen to what you say?" he asked.

"You don't understand! Lucci forced me to do that! He said he would kill you if I didn't! I really, really care about you. When I told you I loved you, I meant it. But it doesn't matter if you believe me about that. If you don't get out of here, you're crew is dead." I said in a last desperate attempt to get him to understand.

He turned his head to look at me. When I saw him, I gasped. There was blood running out of the corner of his mouth and some running down his forhead. "What happened?!" I finally managed to choke out.

"Why do you care?" he asked.

I sunk to my knees. This was to much. I balled my hands into fists in frustration. "Listen to me!" I cried. "You have to get out of here!!! You have to save your crew!!!!!"

He was silent.

Not knowing what else to do, I took his hat off and tossed it into the cage. It landed beside him. He looked at it a minute and then turned away.

I started to cry out of frustration. Why couldn't he see that I was telling the truth?!?

Suddenly, I heard I noise behind me. When I looked around, I saw Lucci standing in the doorway. Beside him stood Blueno with a gun in his hand.

"No." I whisphered.

"So you decided to betray us after all. Well, you know what that means. Blueno." Lucci said.

Blueno raised the gun and aimed it at Luffy.

"NO!!!" I screamed.

He pulled the trigger.

_Is this the end for Luffy?_


	11. Chapter 11:Sacrafice

_So, is this the end for the Pirate King?_

**Chapter 11**

Luffy had a look of shock on his face. Lucci just watched with his normal emotionlessness and Blueno slowly lowered the gun.

"Why?" Luffy asked in quiet disbelief.

I clutched my right shoulder. The blood was already pouring out of the wound. "I don't care if you believe me. I told you the truth Luffy. I do love you." I said through gritted teeth. The pain was rapidly increasing. I thought back to what Lucci had said when he was explaining the bullet to me earlier. Something about more blades opening once it entered the skin, making it nearly impossible to remove.

"I underestimated you." Lucci said calmly. "Now you have made us waste our bullet. That was unfortunate. Now I will have to kill him with my own hands and that will hurt much, much worse."

"What?!" I gasped. There were flashes of light dancing infront of my eyes. I was struggling to stay conscious. "But...I thought..."

"You thought my only way of killing him was that bullet. You will come to learn something about me. I always get what I want, no matter what it takes. You should have let the bullet kill him. It would have been faster and less painful for you." he said.

"You...will never...kill him." I managed to choke out. I was losing alot of blood and fast.

"Blueno, hold her down. Not that she can do much. I will finish off Monkey D. Luffy." Lucci ordered.

Before I knew what had happened, Blueno had grabbed my arms and twisted them behind my back. I cried out in pain as the wound on my shoulder opened farther from the sudden movement.

Lucci changed into his half leopard form right infront of my eyes. This was the first time I had seen him like this. He walked over infront of the cage. "After five years, I will finally kill you. My rokuougon is stronger and you have no place to go. There is no escape. This time, you will not leave this Tower." He held up his fists.

"NO!!!" I cired out. I broke free of Blueno's grasp, ignoring the pain it caused me. Right before Lucci preformed his attack, I ran infront of him.

"Rokuougon." Lucci said.

I had no place to go and no way to soften the impact. Lucci hit me with the full force of his rokuougon. Suddenly, the pain in my arm was the least of my problems.

I sunk to the floor where I lay gasping for air. I coughed and blood came pouring out of my mouth. I felt like my insides where being squeezed by someone who really wanted them to burst. I felt like there had been a bomb explode inside of me but still, I fought to stay conscious because I knew that if I closed my eyes, I would probably never open them.

Lucci looked down at me. "So, you have now become my opponent. That was not a smart move from someone who already was injured. But so be it. I will kill you along with him."

I forced my arms to move and push myself up into a sitting position. "Luffy...take care...of this for me." I managed to say. I pulled the ring off my finger and tossed it behind me. It had blood on it but other then that, it was fine. It landed in front of Luffy.

He looked down at it. I could no longer see his eyes because they were shadowed by his hair. I could tell he was getting mad but there was nothing he could do. His strength was gone.

I started to collapse but I steadied myself with my hands. I didn't have much longer and I knew it. I knew it would use up alot of my remaining strength, but I forced myself to stand anyway. I turned and looked at Luffy. "Luffy...no matter what happens...I will always...love you." I managed to sya before turneing to face Lucci. "I told you before...you...will not...harm him."

"You can barely stand. What gives you the right to say such foolish things?" Lucci questioned.

"I DO!!!" I heard a voice cry behind me. It was accompanied by a shattering sound.

I turned around.

"Impossible." Lucci said.

I gasped. Luffy was standing up but that wasn't what was so shocking. On the ground of the cage lay the pieces of Luffy's seastone cuffs.

"How?!" I choked out.

"You won't hurt her anymore!!! I'm your opponent now!!!!!" Luffy cried. He was mad. Very mad.

But he had no chance of defeating Lucci and saving his crew in time. There was no time for this. "Luffy, don't. Please!" I begged but it had no effect.

"What do you expect to do from inside that cage? You might have broken those cuffs but you are still trapped." Lucci said.

"I don't care!!! You hurt my nakama!!!!! I will never forgive you!!!!!" Luffy yelled.

"No! Don't!" I cried but it was in vain.

"Rankyaku." Lucci said.

Luffy ducked and the blue slash hit the back of the cage which shattered as soon as it was hit. Luffy was now standing in the middle of the shattered cage. He leaned over and picked up his hat and put it around his neck where it hung by the string. He then picked up the ring I had tossed to him earlier. He held it for a moment before slipping it into his pocket. He slowly bent over and started to pump air through his legs and activate Gear Second.

"Luffy!!! NO!!!!!!!!" I screamed.

He stopped and looked up. Lucci looked at me. I started crying. "Please don't! You have to get out of here and save your crew or all this will have been for nothing!!!" I cried. I didn't know where I had found the strength to yell like that but atleast I had gotten his attention.

"It's pointless. Neither of you will leave here alive and neither will the rest of your friends. You need to stop wasting your energy on useless words." Lucci said. He turned to face me. "But you are becoming annoying. Take care of her Blueno."

"With pleasure." Blueno replied. "Tekkai Rin."

He was coming at me and I had no time to move. With all the damage I had already taken, it would most likely kill me. I closed my eyes.

Suddenly, I felt myself being picked up and moved out of the way. It surprised me at first but then the only emotion I felt was relief. I felt myself being set down. I opened my eyes and looked up and saw Luffy standing there. "Thank you." I said gratefully.

He knelt down beside me. "Are you alright?" he asked. I could see the concern in his eyes.

I wasn't okay and I knew it, but if I told him that, he would never leave. "I'm fine." I lied. I stood up on shakey legs but luckily he didn't notice. I looked around and discovered that we were behind one of the rooms pillars so we were safe for now. I took a deep breath and then began talking in a quiet voice so as not to give away our hiding place. "Luffy, there's something I need you to do." He nodded so I continued. "I need you to get out of here and destroy the Tower of Justice. To do that, you'll have to go to the very bottom and collapse the tunnel that runs from here to the Bridge of Hesitation. From the stories you've told me, it's the same one you chased Lucci down before you fought him. Be careful though because as soon as you collapse it, it will start to flood. Get out before it reaches you. Get off Enies Lobby and go to your crew. Warn them about the Buster Call and get out of Water 7. Meanwhile, I'll hold off Lucci and Blueno and catch up with you later." As I said those last words, I knew they weren't true. I would either be killed by Lucci or the tower would collapse on me but if I told Luffy the truth, he would never leave.

He nodded. "How do I collapse the tunnel?" he asked.

I thought for a second. "Gear Third." I replied.

He nodded again. "Promise you'll join us again?" he asked.

"I'll try my hardest." I replied.

Satasfied, he turned to go.

"Luffy wait!" I called after him. I caught up with him I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. When I let go, I whisphered in his ear, "No matter what happens, I'll always love you." Then I let him go.

We walked out from behind the pillar. My new found strength was quickly draining.

"Can we continue now?" Lucci questioned. He was still in his half leopard form. Blueno stood beside him.

"We will fight now!" I cried.

"You? You can barely stand." Lucci said. "I'll make you a deal. I will not harm you any longer and I will forgive you if you will return and work for the government. I will make you above the shichibaku. You will have a full pardon for your crimes. I am only offering this because you could be usefull to us. It would be unwise to refuse this offer."

"I would never work for you!!!!! You made me hurt the person I love and I'll never forgive you for that! So what makes you think I would ever help you?!?!" I asked. I was trying to keep them distracted while Luffy made a break for it.

"Because of him." Lucci said. He suddenly dissapeared and then reappeared in front of Luffy.

"No." I gasped. "Rankyaku!" I kicked toward Lucci.

"Tekkai." he said. It hit him without causing any damage but it was enough of a distraction for Luffy to get past him and make it out of the room.

"Capture him but don't kill him. I want him to see his crew die." Lucci said to Blueno.

Blueno nodded and then disappeared down the hall and after Luffy. Lucci turned to face me.

"Last chance." he said.

"Never." I replied. I figured if I could find ebough strength to last for about ten minutes. After all, I was fighting to save the person I loved. By then Luffy would have had time to destroy the tunnel. Once that happened, it was all over. "Shall we begin?"

"With pleasure." Lucci said with his cruel smile.

_Can Luffy reach the tunnel in time to save Alley or will he be to late?_


	12. Chapter 12:Luffy's Escape

_Hey! It's been a few days since I've posted so sorry to leave you hanging! So, here you go. Luffy vs Blueno!_

**Chapter 12**

Luffy ran down the hallway as fast as he could. When he came to the end of it, he stopped. One way went right and the other way went left. "Uh oh. Which way do I go?" he wondered out loud. "If I want to go down, then I need to go..." He looked to his left and then to his right. "I know! I'll go right because it's the right way!" he exclaimed.

"If you're trying to get down, you might want to go left." a voice behind him said.

"Thanks!" Luffy said. "Hey wait!" he cried and turned around where he saw Blueno standing behind him. "I remember you. You're that guy with the weird hair that looks like a bull."

Blueno frowned. "We meet again Strawhat Luffy." he said. "I have orders to take you back with me. Alive. So make it easy and just come with me now.

"No way! I've got something to do. I'm busy right now!" Luffy said.

"Hmph. I see you haven't changed Strawhat. Well, I guess I'll just have to take you back. Unconscious. Tekkai Rin." he said and kicked off the ground and came towards Luffy.

"Uh oh." Luffy said. He looked down the right hallway and then began running down it and away from Blueno.

Blueno stopped. "Doa Doa." he said and opened a door in the air. He climbed in and shut it.

Luffy looked behind him. "Huh? Where did he go?" he said as he skidded to a halt.

"Doa Doa." Luffy heard. He felt someone grab his feet.

"Whaa!" Luffy yelled as his feet were imprisoned by Blueno.

"Doa Doa." Blueno said as he stepped out of the air in front of Luffy. "Rankyaku." he said and kicked.

It hit Luffy and knocked him backwards. His legs were still stuck so he just stretched backwards before springing back up. He wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth. "That was interesting." he said. "Hey! He diasappeared again!!"

"Doa Doa." Blueno said. He opened a door above Luffy's head. "Tekkai Sai." He came straight down.

Luffy leaned back as far as he could and just managed to dodge the attack. Unfortunately, that ment that Blueno slammed into the ground as hard as he could where it had already been weakened by the doors that held Luffy's feet. There was a horrible cracking sound and suddenly the ground gave way.

"Wah!" Luffy cried as he and Blueno fell through the floor.

They came crashing down in a pile of stone and dust. Luffy was the first to stand up. He picked up his hat, which had fallen off when they fell, and dusted it off. He slipped it back on and then began looking around for Blueno. "Where'd he go?" Luffy wondered out loud.

"Shigan." Blueno said as he appeared in front of Luffy. He stuck his finger towards Luffy's heart.

Luffy jumped back but not in time to avoid the attack altogether. Blueno hit him slightly to the right of his heart. Luffy took a few steps back and placed his hand over the wound. When he brought his hand back up, there was blood on it. He looked up at Blueno and clenched his fist. Suddenly he streched his arm back and yelled, "Gomu Gomu no Bullet!"

Blueno looked bored with the attempt. "Tekkai." he said. Luffy hit him in the stomach but got no result. "You never learn. You're just as stupid as the first time I met you. You're simple attacks don't work on me."

"Then I'll just have to try something else!" Luffy said. He put his hands on his knees and forced the air down into them. His skin began to glow pink and steam was coming off his skin. "Gear Second." he said as his fist touched the ground.

"You think that trick will work?" Blueno asked. "I've seen what you can do and Lucci has told me everything you did to him. I know how to stop you."

Luffy stood up and then held his right hand out with his palm open, facing Blueno. He didn't speak. Suddenly, he punched with his left fist straight toward Blueno's torso, but Blueno wasn't there. "Where'd he go?" Luffy wondered said for the thousandth time.

"Shigan." Blueno said from behind Luffy. He stuck his finger into Luffy's back, very close to the spine.

Luffy stumbled forward but quickly regained his balance. He turned around to face Blueno. "Gomu Gomu no Jet Pistol!" he cried and punched.

"Tekkai." Blueno said. Luffy's punch hit him but did no good. "Having trouble?" Blueno asked. "My tekkai is stronger now. You won't be able to break it so easily this time."

Luffy gritted his teeth. This was going to be harder then the last time. He looked at Blueno again and decided to try again. "Gomu Gomu no Jet Rifle!" he yelled as he ran at Blueno. He coiled his left arm behind him and charged.

"Tekkai Gou." Blueno said.

Luffy hit him in the chest at full speed. It came very close to breaking Blueno's tekkai but in the end, it failed just like his other attempts.

Blueno looked down at Luffy. "Is that all?" Blueno asked in his usual monotone.

Luffy glared at him. "Why isn't this working?" he wondered to himself. He could fell the effects of Gear Second slowly wearing off. He had to hurry!

"Anytime Strawhat." Blueno said.

Luffy ran toward Blueno and stretched his head back. "Gomu Gomu no Jet Kane!" he yelled and brought his head forward and slammed it smack into Blueno's face.

The attack had caught Blueno off guard. He hadn't expected Luffy to hit his face. He was sent falling to the ground where he lay still for a minute before rising to a sitting position. He wiped a small trickle of blood out of the corner of his mouth and began to speak. "Is that the best you can do? Well, I'm getting bored. I don't care what Lucci said, I would enjoy killing you right here and so...I will." He rose to his feet.

The last of the energy from Gear Second ran out and Luffy returned to normal. He now had no chance of breaking Blueno's tekkai.

"When did this guy get so strong?" Luffy thought.

"Doa Doa." Blueno said and opened a door in the air. He stepped in and disappeared.

"What now?!" Luffy wondered out loud.

"Doa Doa." Blueno said and stepped out of a door in front of Luffy. He closed the door and then held up two fists to Luffy's chest."That technique-" Luffy thought but didn't have time to finish it.

"Rokuougon." Blueno said. It hit Luffy and sent him flying across the room where he hit the floor and layed still.

"Surprised?" Blueno asked. "I've changed since we last fought. I've become stronger and I've learned a few things from Lucci. I let your so called girlfriend win earlier just to see what she was capable of but I won't show you the same mercy."

After getting over the eventual shock of the attack and the fact that Blueno had preformed it, Luffy pushed himself up off the ground. "Why should you?" Luffy asked as he gazed steadily at Blueno.

"What?" Blueno asked, caught offguard by the odd question.

"Why should you show me mercy? I'm a pirate and your supposed to capture me. Isn't that the way things are? When I came here to save her, I didn't expect it to be easy. So why should you show me any mercy? This is a fight, isn't it?" Luffy replied.

Blueno stared at him in amazement. "What's with this guy?" he thought. "My rokuougon doesn't even seem to have fazed him. How is he still standing? But that doesn't change anything." Then to Luffy, "If that's the way you want it, then that is how it will be. Let's continue."

"Fine by me." Luffy said. "Because I've figured out how to beat you and how to do my job for Alley."

"What is he talking about? What did that girl tell him?" Blueno wondered to himself.

Luffy grinned.

"Doa Doa." Blueno said and disappeared into another door.

"I won't fall for that one again!" Luffy cried.

"Doa Doa." Blueno said.

Luffy stepped back but Blueno didn't appear in front of him. "Huh?" Luffy said.

"Sai Dai Rin:Rokuougon." Blueno said.

Suddenly Luffy felt the blast from the attack. The attack had come from above and it hit Luffy's entire body. He opened his mouth in shock and blood ran out. He sunk to the floor and layed there, face down.

Blueno landed on the ground infront of Luffy's body. "You're still the same person you were last time we fought. Talking about doing jobs for people you call 'nakama' and risking your life to help them. That is what makes you weak. You will learn that the world revolves using power, not by counting on nakama." Blueno said. He looked down at Luffy and then started to walk away.

"You've...got it all...wrong." Luffy said.

"Hm." Blueno mused. He turned around.

Luffy leaned on his elbows as he strugled to get up. He lifted his head and looked Blueno in the eye. "Nakama don't make you...weak. They make...you strong. That's what...you fight for. To save them. And knowing that they're...counting on you...that's what makes you stand!!!" Luffy yelled. He forced himself to stand up. He was breathing deeply and there was blood on the side of his mouth, but he was standing.

"Impossible." Blueno thought. "I was sure that had killed him." Then outloud, "You still haven't learned, Strawhat? In the new world, there will be no nakama. It will be a world ruled by the strong and the weak will cower before us. You will die along with everyone else who still thinks that nakama is what makes you strong. You will all see that power is truely the ultimate strength."

"We'll see about that!" Luffy cried, forgetting the pain. He bit his thumb and blew into it. "Gear Third." he said.

Blueno watched with little interest.

"Gomu Gomu no Giant Pistol!" he yelled and pumped the air into his right fist. Unfortunately, Luffy's fist took up more room then the hallway could provide. Although the attack hit Blueno, it also completely destroyed the hallway they were in. As Luffy brought the air back into his chest, the ceiling and the floor began to collapse. Luffy fell down into a room that had once been underneath the hallway and Blueno landed on the other side of the room.

Blueno stood up. "Nice try Strawhat but it will take more then that to-" Blueno started to say but was interupted when Luffy started his next attack.

"Gomu Gomu no Giant Ono!" he cried and pumped the air into his left foot. He stretched his leg up to begin the attack, which took out a few more of the Tower's hallways and rooms.

"This is my last chance." Blueno thought. "Tekkai Gou." he said and tensed his body.

Luffy brought his foot crashing down on top of Blueno. He had no chance. He was sent crashing through about twenty floors of the Tower of Justice. When he hit the tunnel, he was crushed.

Luffy brought his foot back into place and deactivated Gear Third and shrunk. He sighed but it was a small price to pay. He had done his job and defeated Blueno. He set his hat back on his head and smiled. "You were wrong! Nakama do make you strong!" he shouted at the unconscious figure about twenty stories below.

Suddenly, the building started to shake. Pieces of the ceiling began to fall and the floor shook and threatened to give way. "Uh oh. Time to go!" Luffy said and started looking for the way out.

_Hmmm...I thought that chapter was a little confusing. But I'll leave that up to you. Please review!!! Next chapter:Alley vs Lucci!_


	13. Chapter 13:Final Fight:Alley vs Lucci!

_Now that we know what happened to Luffy, what will happen to Alley as she faces off with Lucci? _

**Chapter 13**

I was now getting read to face off against possibly the most powerfull man in the world and I was already in a pitiful state. Snap out of it! All you have to do is hang on until Luffy destroys the tunnel! That's what I kept telling myself, even if I didn't believe it.

I tried to think of an attack that I would be able to use that would cause the least damage to my own body. My right arm hung uselessly at my side and my insides still felt like they were on fire.

"Rankyaku Gaichou." Lucci said.

I watched in amazement as he used his claws to create a bird shape. Suddenly the bird came at me. I tried jumping to the side to avoid it but I was a second too late to avoid it completely. It hit my left ankle where it left a deep gash. I landed on my feet but barely. It was becoming more difficult to fight as the wounds kept piling up. I gritted my teeth in frustration and pain.

"I thought this guy was tough when he kicked me earlier but in this form, it's like he's on a whole new level!" I thought.

"Soru." he said and appeared in front of me. He moved faster then I had thought possible. "Shigan Madara."

I had no time to move so I did what I could. "Tekkai." I said.

All of a sudden he began preforming the attack. His claws hit me everywhere and since he was in his half leopard form, he had claws. Because I was already weakened, Lucci was able to break my tekkai part of the way. I had managed to keep him from puncturing my skin, but I had still felt the force of the attack.

When he stopped, I stepped back a few steps and coughed. A little blood came out. "Great. Even that small of an attack damaged my insides." I thought bitterly.

Suddenly, there was a loud cracking sound from down the hallway followed by what sounded like the gound collapsing.

"Blueno." Lucci muttered. "I told you not to kill him."

"Luffy." I said quietly.

Unfortunately, Lucci heard me. "Maybe I should have let Blueno kill him and bring back his lifeless body for you to see before you die. But now it's to late. I will kill you before you get the chance to see him again."

"You'll never kill me!!!" I cried, even if I didn't believe it. "And you'll never kill Luffy either! I won't let you!!!" I managed to keep the pain out of my voice, even though it was no use. You could tell I was dead by just looking at me.

Lucci smiled that cruel smile again. "And what gives you the authority to stop me?" he asked.

"Because I have someone to protect." I replied.

He looked at me without a word. Then he kicked me as hard as he could in the jaw. If I had thought that when he kicked me the first time was bad, this was ten times worse. It slammed me into one of the rooms many pillars which came crashing down around me. I sat there, to stunned to move. My jaw hurt and my whole body was racked with pain. I couldn't stand. All my injuries had finally caught up.

Lucci walked up to me. "Any last words?" he aksed. He held up two fists, preparing to do rokuougon.

I looked up at him, this time, not bothering to hide the pain. "No matter what you do to me...you will never make me stop loving him. And if you kill me here...I will die knowing that you were never...able to take that away from me" I said. I was starting to get tears in my eyes but I didn't care. I let them come. It didn't matter now anyway. I smiled at the thought of Luffy but it was a shaky smile because of the tears. "Thank you for everything Luffy." I said quietly and the tears came.

Lucci watched with mild interest. "Rokuo-" he started to say but he never got to finish. The building suddenly gave a violent shudder and bits of the ceiling started to fall. He lowered his fists.

"Luffy." I said with a small smile. "Thank you."

Lucci gave a small snarl. "Life Return." he said. His body started to change. He became slimmer but there was a little more muscle in his arms. "Now we can continue." he said. He held up his two fists again.

I looked him straight in the eye. I knew what was coming and I wasn't going to show fear. I had said all I wanted to.

Suddenly, something happened that was unexpected. Since Lucci was in his half leopard form, he had a tail. And unfortunately for him, a piece of the ceiling had fallen on it, trapping him.

I was so shocked at first that I didn't move. Then, realizing that he was distracted, I forced myself to get up. This was probably my only chance to attack, so I took it. While he was busy trying to free himself, I thought of all the attacks I could use, but there was one I kept coming back to. It was the only thing that would work. The only problem was, I couldn't lift my right arm.

I stood about five feet in front of Lucci and prepared for my final attack. I held up my left fist but I couldn't force my right arm to move. "Come on!" I thought. "Move!"

Slowly, my arm started to move but it wasn't from the shoulder. It was from the elbow down. I lifted it up as far as it would go but it wasn't enough. It still didn't match up with my left fist. The upper part of my right arm still hung by my side. There was only one way to do this but the cosequences would be bad.

"Sai Dai Rin:Rokuougon!" I cried. The force from the attack hit Lucci but where I had been forced to keep my arms close to my side, it also damaged my body. I felt several of my ribs crack. Although it had knocked Lucci out cold, it was like I had preformed rokuougon on myself. That was the cost and I had payed it, but if Luffy was safe, then it had been worth it.

I sank to my knees and then collapsed on the floor. I looked around at the collapsing building, the unconscious Lucci, and destroyed cage where Luffy had been. Then with a continted sigh, I closed my eyes one last time.

_Is this the end for Alley? Oh, and sorry it was so short!_


	14. Chapter 14:Deep Feelings

_What happened to Luffy? Did he make it out? And what bout Alley?_

**Chapter 14**

"Is he ever going to come out?" Nami asked Zoro.

"I don't know. He won't tell me what happened. All I know is that he came back without her and ever since, he hasn't been the same." Zoro replied.

Nami sighed. She had no idea what to do about their captain. She had never seen him like this. Something big had happened. That she was sure of.

Luffy had come back to Thousand Sunny the day after he had left. He had returned alone and gone straight to his room where he had stayed and he refused to talk to anyone. It had been three days since then. Sanji had forced him to eat so he wouldn't starve. This was not like Luffy at all and Nami was starting to wonder if he would ever be the same.

"Where's Luffy?" Sanji asked as he entered the meeting hall. "Lunch is ready."

"He's still in his room." Nami replied gloomily.

"What's gotten into that guy?" Sanji asked.

"Nobody knows." Zoro replied.

"Maybe somebody should go talk to him." Nami suggested.

"But who would understand Luffy?" Sanji asked.

They all sat there thinking a minute.

"There's only one person on here who can put up with him." Nami said.

"Who?" Sanji asked.

"Vivi." Nami replied.

"Huh?" Zoro asked, confused.

"Think about it. The only time she ever got mad at him was back in Alabasta when they had that argument. Vivi is just good with people. She understands everybody. If anybody can figure out what's wrong with him, she will." Nami explained.

"She has a point." Sanji said.

Zoro sighed. "Doesn't she always?" he asked.

As a reply, Nami hit him on the head, leaving a large bump. And if that wasn't enough, Sanji had to get a kick in for insulting his Nami-san.

"I'll go ask her." Nami said. She walked out of the room, leaving Sanji and Zoro to another one of their fights. When she reached her room, she found Robin reading a book, but Vivi wasn't around. "Hey Robin, have you seen Vivi?" Nami asked.

"She's said she was going up on deck." Robin replied without looking up from her book.

"Thanks!" Nami said and headed for the deck. She found Vivi and Kohza watching Usopp make one of his many inventions. It seemed like he was explaining things to them as he went. "Hey Vivi!" Nami called.

Vivi turned around to face Nami with a smile. "Hey Nami. What are you doing up here?" she asked.

"Me? What about you? Why are you listening to Usopp?" Nami said with a giggle.

"Oh. That. Kohza asked one simple question and suddenly we're stuck here listening to every step of this wondeful new invention that will change life on the Grand Line. Or so Usopp says." Vivi explained.

Nami just shook her head.

"So, what did you need?" Vivi asked.

Nami suddenly remembered the reason she had come out here. "We need your help with something. We need someone to talk to Lu-" but Vivi cut her off with the wave of a hand.

"Say no more. I'll do it." Vivi answered.

"Thanks Vivi." Nami said with a smile.

"I'll be back in a little while." Vivi told Kohza. He gave a small nod, still absorbed in Usopp's explination. Vivi turned back around to Nami and they began walking back bellow deck. Vivi leaned over and whisphered in Nami's ear, "Thanks. I've been trying to get away from them FORever."

Nami giggled. "Anytime." she said and then they headed below deck and to the meeting hall where Sanji and Zoro were still arguing.

"Okay. That's enough you two." Nami said threatiningly.

"Yes Nami-swaaannn!" Sanji said with a huge heart in his eye.

"Sheesh. I'll never get this guy!" Zoro thought.

"Sanji-kun, could you fix some warm tea? I think it would be usefull." Vivi said.

"I'll be right back Vivi-san!" Sanji said. He literally floated out of the room.

A second later, he returned carrying a tray with a pot of tea and two cups. "Here you are Vivi-san." Sanji said as he handed her the tray.

"Thanks Sanji-kun." Vivi said with a smile. She took the tray and walked out of the room and down the hall towards the mens quarters. She set the tray down by the door and knocked. "Luffy! Luffy? Can I come in?" she asked. When he didn't answer, she opened the door, picked up the tray, and walked in.

The room was deserted except for Luffy who was lying in his hammock with his hat on his chest with his hands behind his head. He didn't stir, even when Vivi pulled up a chair and sat beside him.

Vivi didn't say a word. She knew he would talk if he wanted to. Instead she poured herself a cup of tea and sat in silence, taking small sips. After a while, she heard him give a deep sigh. She set her half full cup down and poured the second cup full. She handed it to him and he took it without a word. He sat up but he didn't drink any of it. He just stared at it.

Suddenly, and without warning, he burst into tears. They ran down his face and fell onto his hat, his shirt, and spilled onto the floor. "She promised! How could she leave? Why did she do that?!! She promised! She PROMISED!!!!!" he cried.

Vivi layed a comforting hand on his shoulder. His sobs eventually turned to sniffles and then he quit altogether. He took a deep breath that made his whole body shake. When he had finally calmed down, he looked up at Vivi. His eyes had a haunted look to them and reflcted in them was untold pain.

Vivi patted his hand reassuringly, urging him to continue. He took a deep breath and then began talking. "Why did I let her do it?" he asked. "I should have made her come with me! But now-" he trailed off.

Vivi nodded. She got where he was going with this. "She did what she thought was right."

"But how could I?! I could have saved her but she sacraficed herself so I could live!!! Why?" he questioned.

Vivi was surprised to hear ths. "Sacraficed?" she thought to herself. Then outloud, "Luffy, she knew what she was doing. If I know Alley, this is what she wanted. But she didn't want you to be miserable. Don't be sad. She would want you to live the rest of your life in happiness. And even if she is gone, she'll never completely leave you. She'll always be with you. In here." Vivi said as she put her hand over his heart.

Slowly, a smile started to spread across Luffy's face. "You're right Vivi. She would want me to be happy, wouldn't she? And I'll never forget her. She'll always be with me. I won't let her sacrafice go to waste!" he exclaimed.

Vivi smiled. Luffy was back but there was still one thing she had to ask. "Luffy, what exactly happened?" she asked.

Luffy's smiled faded and he gave a small sigh. "I guess you should know." he said. "When I left Thousand Sunny, I went to Enies Lobby. I was heading through the Tower of Justice so I could get to Impel Down and rescue her so we could go back together. I came into this big room that was made completely of seastone but I didn't know it then. Suddenly, the door on the other side of the room opened and I saw Alley. At first, I was excited. Then she came over there and started saying she wasn't my nakama and she was working for the government. She helped them capture me and she took my hat. Then this guy from those CP9 people came in and was mean to me and beat me up. He stabbed my hat and then put me in this cage. Later, Alley came to save me. She had my hat with her. She gave it back to me and tried to tell me what was going on. She said the government was going to kill me unless she pretended to work for them and that a Buster Call was coming after you guys. I didn't believe her at first, even when she said she still loved me. Then Lucci and Blueno showed up. They tried to kill me with this special sharp bullet but Alley jumped in front of it and it hit her instead. It didn't kill her but then Blueno grabbed her and Lucci was going to kill me, but she took that hit to. Then they tried to kill her but I saved her. She told me to destroy the building and then go to my crew. I made her promise to meet me and she said she would but I think I knew that she never would. She was just trying to get me to go. I could have saved her even if they had killed me. How could I have just left her there?!! How Vivi?!!!" he cried. There were tears in his eyes again.

Vivi leaned over and cradled his head in her arms while he cried. "Everything will be all right. You'll see. It'll just take some time but eventually, it will be alright." Vivi said comfortingly.

Luffy finally stopped crying again. Vivi handed him his cup of tea and he took small, shaky sips of it. When he had calmed down, he began talking again. "So, what have I missed these last few days?" he asked.

"Well, Nami said we're looking for an island to relax on. Before you got back to the ship, we were fighting off some marines. Now that I know the whole story, I guess those were the first Buster ships. Anyway, we got out of there pretty fast using the Coup de Burst. So far, they haven't found us. So now, like I said before, we're looking for an island to relax and stock up on supplies. After that, who knows." Vivi said. "Luffy, we've been worried about you."

"Sorry." he said quietly.

"But now I realize that you deserved to be upset." she said.

"Um...Vivi. Can I get something to eat?" Luffy asked.

Vivi giggled. "Sure! There might be some leftovers from lunch. Come on. Let's go find out!" Before he had time to protest, Vivi had grabbed his hand and was dragging him down the hall.

"Hey! Wait a second! Where are we going?" Luffy asked.

"You said you were hungry." Vivi replied.

"Yeah but I'm not ready to-" but it was to late. She had already dragged him into the kitchen where Sanji was clearing the lunch dishes.

"Vivi-san!!!" he cried excitedly. Then he saw Luffy. "So, our captain has finally decided to join us I see."

Vivi released Luffy and whisphered in Sanji's ear, "Go easy on him. He told me what happened and it wasn't good. Just give him some food. He's probably half starved."

"As you wish." Sanji said. He unlocked the refrigerator and pulled out a piece of meat. He locked the fridge back and pulled out a frying pan and began cooking the meat. Luffy watched with drool coming out of his mouth. Vivi watched the scene for a minute before silently slipping out of the room to find Kohza. When the door shut she found herself grinning. Luffy was back.

That Evening

"Hey! You guys!!! Get out here and see this!!!" Nami yelled as she banged on the men's quarter's door.

"Open the door marimo head! It's my Nami-san!!!!!" Nami heard Sanji yell.

"Do it yourself you love cook!" Zoro replied.

"What was that you crap swordsman?" Sanji asked.

"Do you guys always have to do this?" Kohza said. "I'll just get it myself!"

The door opened and Nami was greated by a slight grunt from Kohza. She ignored him and continued yelling. "We're here!!! And this place is like a tropical paradise!!!!!" Nami exclaimed. "There are resturants and shops all along the beach and the sun is starting to set!!! It's so beautiful!!! You have to come see it!!!!!!!"

After a little more urging, Nami managed to get them all up on deck. They all began to make preperations to spend the evening in town. Nami, Vivi, and Robin were going shopping. Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper were going in search of anything cool. Franky wanted to look for something new and cool for Thousand Sunny. Sanji was going to stock up on fresh supplies and Kohza was going with him for the heck of it. Zoro said he didn't have anything to do so he offered to stay and guard the ship. No one else wanted the job so they quickly agreed.

As they were getting ready to go there seperate ways, Nami spotted something down the beach. The group headed down to see what it was. When they got closer and saw what it was, Luffy let out a gasp.

"No way!" Usopp cried.

Nami and Vivi gasped and put there hands over their mouths.

Robin, Sanji, and Kohza frowned.

Franky's eyes went wide.

"How?!" Chopper cried.

In front of them lay the missing Miny Merry that was last seen carrying Alley towards Enies Lobby.

_Oh! Plot twist! Lol!!! Thanks for reading! Till next time._


	15. Chapter 15:The Meeting and the Parting

_She's back! Alley's alive but can she find Luffy? And will things work out even if they do?_

**Chapter 15**

I was sitting in a chair in one of the islands many resturants and the waiter had just left after taking my order. Other people in the resturant kept staring at me but I didn't care. It was probably the many bandages I was wrapped up in or the wide brimmed hat that covered my face.

Suddenly, a man stood up and got everyone's attention. He was waving a paper up in the air and shouting over the crowd. I decided to pay attention to what he had to say.

"Hey! Everyone! The latest paper just arrived and it has big news!!!" the man yelled. A hushed silence fell over the crowd as he began reading from the paper in his hand. "Three days ago, the Strawhat Pirate that was captured, escaped from Impel Down. They then proceeded to launch an attack on Enies Lobby, aided by the help of their captain,Strawhat Luffy." Here there was a loud gasp from the crowd. "The two pirates then tried to escape after there attack failed but two brave government workers attempted to stop them. Seeing that there plan had failed, Strawhat Luffy then destroyed the Tower of Justice. He left behind his crewmember who then killed the two government agents but in doing so, got trapped in the collapsing building. Her name has now been revealed to be Alley. She was killed when the building collapsed and so her former bounty of 200,000,000 berries no longer stands. And the bounty of Strawhat Luffy has been raised to 500,000,000 berries." The man then set the paper down and pulled out a slip of paper. He held it out for the crowd to see. It was Luffy's wanted poster with his new bounty on it, 500,000,000 berries. Here, there were more gasps from the crowd followed by stunned silence. Then suddenly, everyone started talking at once.

"The Pirate King destroyed Enies Lobby?!!" one person cried.

"Those poor government workers!" cried another. At this comment,I frowned. Lucci and Blueno are poor government workers? Give me a break. I couldn't believe how many lies had been in that story, but then again, the World Government wasn't big on truth. There was one lie in there that they actually thought was truth though. They thought I was dead. Actually, it was a miracle that I was alive. In fact, if it hadn't been for a little help, I wouldn't be sitting here listening to the story of my own death. My mind began to drift back to that day as the crowd continued shouting out ridiculous comments.

After I had collapsed on the floor and closed my eyes, I had heard the sound of footsteps. I had then forced my eyes back open in time to see a tall man walk into the room. He was wearing the outfit of a vice-admiral and an odd mask that looked something like a dog's head. He had looked around at the mostly destroyed room before his eyes came to rest on me. He had walked over and I had quickly closed my eyes, pretending to be out cold. He had put two fingers on my wrist to check my pulse. When he had figured out I was alive, he had gently picked me up, being careful not to cause any farther damage. He had muttered something about Lucci and then he had quickened his pace. I must have passed out then because the next thing I knew, I was in a small cabin on what I guessed was a ship. Suddenly the door had opened and a tall man walked in. He had been the same one who had saved me except this time, he hadn't been wearing the strange mask.

"So, you're awake?" he had said when he had seen that I was awake.

"So, what's a marine doing saving a pirate?" I had asked with a smirk.

"I couldn't let one of my grandson's crew die. I know how he is. If he found out that I didn't save you, well..." there he had trailed off, leaving me to wonder what exactly it was he meant.

"Your grandson?" I had asked.

"Yes. I am the grandfather of Monkey D. Luffy. My name is Monkey D. Garp and I'm a vice-admiral in the marines. You are currently on my ship but I'll drop you off on the next island. Just don't let anyone know I let you go. It wouldn't look good on my part." Garp had said.

I had sat there in stunned silence. Luffy had told me a little about this guy, like how he had raised Luffy in a very harsh way. Was this really the same person?

Seeing the surprised look on my face, he had given a small chuckle. "I'm guessing you've heard of me?"

"Um...just a little bit." I had answered, causing him to laugh harder. "But this whole thing still doesn't make any since. Why were you at Enies Lobby and how did you know who I was?"

"I was there at a meeting at Marine Headquarters. When I came out, I was on my way to see Lucci about something. As I was heading towards his room, I felt the building shake and then the ceiling started to fall. I heard Lucci's voice and so I headed in that direction. What I found was a dead leopard and you." he had replied.

"Dead?!" I had asked in a shocked voice. Had I really killed Lucci?

"I wouldn't be so surprised if I was you. I've heard things about you. You have, I mean had, a bounty of 200,000,000 million." he had said.

"Had? What do you mean by had?" I had demanded.

"Well, according to the World Government, you're supposed to be dead so your bounty is no longer active. And if I was you, I would keep it that way until you can fight again." Garp had said.

"Are you saying that I can't fight?!!" I had cried.

"Not the way you are now. Have you looked at yourself?" he had asked.

That was when I had finally looked down at myself. I had discovered then that I was almost completely covered in bandages.

"It's a good thing there's a doctor on this ship. What happened to you?" he had asked in amazement.

"I'd rather not say."

"Lucci?"

I had looked down at the floor. "Something like that."

He had chuckled and then handed me a small tablet to take. Then he had said he would drop me off at the next island and left.

And now, here I sat, hearing the news of my death in some beachside resturant. I looked down at my right arm. It was the one thing the doctor on Garp's ship hadn't been able to fix. The bullet was still imbeded deep in my shoulder and it had pretty much paralyzed my right arm. Well, the bullet and my own rokuougon. I ran my left hand slowly over the bandages on my right shoulder, wincing a bit when I found the wound.

At that time, the waiter set down a plate in front of me that was filled with fresh fruit. I ate it with mild interest while watching my surroundings. "Well, atleast Garp dropped me off on this island. It's relaxing and it's not overly expensive." I thought. I gave a small smile as I thought about the beli I still had left. It had been nice of Garp to give me so much. Maybe Luffy and his grandfather really weren't that different.

I finished my food, payed, and then left. I walked out onto the crowded streets of the island, searching for something to do. I figured I might as well stay entertained. It was pointless of me to leave this island until atleast most of my wounds had healed. In particualr, my ankle from Lucci's rankyaku and the damage my own rokuougon had done. After those were healed up, I would rent a small boat, gather some supplies, and head out to find Luffy.

I sighed. A dark shadow was suddenly cast over my good mood at the thought of Luffy. Would I ever see him again? He probably thought I was dead. I gave a half hearted laugh at that thought. I mean, everyone thought I was dead, didn't they?

I suddenly tripped over a crack in the pavement. I regained my balance and continued walking. "Thanks Garp." I thought to myself. "You just had to insist I disguise myself and in this ridiculous outfit. Grr." I thought back to our conversation before I had left his ship.

"You can't go around in your normal clothes and you can't show your face. If someone recognizes you, your bounty will become active again and then I'll have no choice but to capture you." he had said.

"So what do you suggest I do? Buy a wedding gown and a veil?!!" I had said sarcastically.

"No. But you might want to think of getting something more...feminine. You know...a dress." he had said uncomfortably.

At that my jaw had dropped. I mean, I did wear dresses from time to time, but I was much more comfortable in a tank top and shorts. Did this guy really expect me to walk around in a dress?!

And yet, here I was in a red sundress, wide brimmed hat, and flip flops decorated in tacky flowers that I had purchased in a tourists clothing store. The whole thing was tacky but I had to admit, it was the perfect disguise. As much I hated to admit it, Garp had been right.

I was so lost in thought that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. I bumped into a passerbyer and fell to the ground. I turned my head around to look at the person I had crashed into. He had turned around to help me up.

"I'm sorry." I appologized.

"It's fine." he said.

A chill ran down my spine. Was it possible? I looked up at the man again for a better view. "Impossible." I said under my breath. I allowed him to help me up.

"Sorry mam." he said and started to walk away with his two friends.

"Wait!" I called after him. He stopped and turned around. I ran up to catch up with him. "Luffy, you're really here." I said in shock.

"Huh?" he asked, confused.

I took the hat off my head with my good arm and looked him in the eye.

He looked at me in shook. "But you...I thought...they said..." he stuttered.

I held my finger up to his lips. "Shh." I said, silencing him "Not here."

"Oi, Luffy! Are you coming?!" Usopp called. He and Chopper pushed their way back towards us through the crowd. "Luffy are-" but he stopped short when he saw me. He and Chopper were just as bad as Luffy had been.

"We thought...you're supposed to be..." Usopp stuttered.

"How can...but you..." Chopper spluttered at the same time as Usopp.

I shushed both of them. "I'll explain everything. I promise. But first, what are you guys doing here?!" I asked.

"We could ask you the same thing!" Usopp cried.

"I promise I'll explain later. Right now, I'm just happy to see you guys." I replied.

Luffy, who had been silent through all of this, now spoke up. "Um...Usopp, Chopper...could you uh...give us a second?" he asked.

"Oh! Sure!" Usopp exclaimed, realizing why Luffy had made that odd request.

"Huh?" Chopper asked, confused. He still didn't get the whole love thing.

"Come on! Let's go explore!" Usopp said and dragged poor Chopper off before he could protest.

"You...here...but how?" Luffy managed to say.

The whole time we had been standing here, people had been constantly running into us. "Umm Luffy, I don't think here is the best place." I said. I slipped my hat back on and dragged him throught the crowd until we came to one of the many beachside resturants were we got a table outside. A waiter came and I ordered two lemonades and a plate of fish for Luffy. When the waiter had gone, we began talking.

"Okay. Now we can talk so where do you want me to start?" I asked.

"Umm..." he said as he thought about it. "I don't know."

I sighed. Sometimes I wish he could be more specific. "How about I just start from the beginning?" I suggested.

He smiled. "Okay!" he agreed, happy by my suggestion.

"Well, let's see. After you left the room, Lucci sent Blueno after you. Me and Lucci started fighting but we were interupted when the building started shaking. That was you, right?" I explained.

"Yep!" Luffy said with a huge grin like he had accomplished something huge.

I smiled. "Thanks." I said. Then I continued. "After that, I think Lucci figured out what was going on. He was about to kill me when a piece of the roof fell on his tail. While he was distracted, I used rokuougon to finish him." I said.

"Wow!" Luffy exclaimed. "I bet that hurt!"

"Yeah. Actually, it killed him." I admitted. I was suddenly ashamed at the fact of killing someone. Luffy never had.

He noticed my discomfort and spoke up. "It's okay. After all he did, he deserved that."

"Thanks." I said with an embarrased smile. "So, when he was gone, it was like I gave up. I accepted my fate and I knew I was going to die. So I layed down and closed my eyes but then something amazing happened. I don't know how or why, but someone came into that room. He picked me up and carried me out of there. Do you want to know who that man was?" I asked, leaning towards Luffy a little.

At that moment, the waiter came and set down our drinks and Luffy's fish. I thanked him and then he left.

"Who?" Luffy asked eagerly. He took a bite of fish and stared at me, waiting for my answer.

I leaned in even closer and said in a hushed tone, "Monkey D. Garp."

"WHAT?!!?!!" he cried, causing several people to look in our direction.

I shushed him and then sat back in my chair. When he had calmed down, I continued. "Yes. Your grandfather was at Enies Lobby for some meeting or something. I don't remember what happened after that. I woke up on his ship the next day. He said the ships doctor had saved me. We talked for a while and then he told me about how I no longer had a bounty because I wasn't supposed to be alive. Then he told me that he would drop me off at the next island with my ship and some beli to get me a nice hotel room, some food, and a disguise. He told me to buy this outfit so no one would recognize me and my bounty wouldn't become active again. He said I was in no shape to fight any bounty hunters and I had to agree with him. He dropped me and Mini Merry off here this morning." I said. "Well, that was pretty much all that happened to me. What about you? Luffy? Luffy?"

He was still zoned out from the whole grandfather thing. "Huh? Me?" he asked, still in his stupor.

"Luffy! Come back!!! It's over with! Your grandfather is gone." I said.

That seemed to snap him out of it. He looked down at his plate and then, seeing he still had fish left, stuffed it all into his mouth and swallowed. He then drunk his whole glass of lemonade before finally looking back at me.

When I was sure I had his attention, I spoke up again. "So, did you hear any of that?" I asked him.

"Yep! I heard the whole thing. Atleast he was nice to you." he said, muttering the last part.

I grinned. The one thing that would never change was Luffy and his grandfather. I finished my lemonade, payed, and then we left. We walked along in silence for a while until we came to a sort of park. We found a bench and sat down to finish our conversation.

Luffy was the first to speak. "So, now we can go back together." he said as he put his arm around me. I flinched when he touched the spot were the bullet wound was. "Sorry!" he appologized quickly.

"That's okay." I replied. After a moment I spoke up. "Luffy...I can't go back with you."

"Why not??" he asked, surprised. He withdrew his arm and watched me closely.

I gave a sigh and looked away. I removed my hat from my head and then looked him straight in the eye. "I've been thinking about alot of things Luffy. I've realized that Garp was right. There's no way I can protect myself anymore. What if the World Government saw me? And even if I could fight, what if they used me like that again? Luffy, I can't live like this. I can't be your weakness anymore. I can't cause you anymore pain and I can't be a burden anymore." I said. I felt tears come to my eyes but I pushed them away. I was convinced that this was what was best.

"It doesn't matter if you can't fight! I promise I'll protect you. I can help you! You aren't a burden!" he cried. I could see the tears in his eyes too.

"Luffy, we can't do this. It's one thing for me to risk my life, but for me to risk yours too...I can't do that. But we'll always be nakama. That, I promise." I said and with that I slipped my hat on and disappeared into the crowd. I could hear him call but I didn't look back. "It's for the best." I reminded myself as I walked toward my hotel in the darkening streets.

_Whoa! Bet you didn't see that coming! Te he! Well, anyway, why would Alley just walk away? Is there something else keeping her back? Find out next time! _


	16. Chapter 16:The Truth

_Well, I feel like I haven't updated in forever, even thought it's only been a few days. School has just kept me busy. Ugh. Anyway, this is probably going to be one of the last chapter. There will only be one maybe two more after this. But for now, read and review! Thanks!_

**Chapter 16**

I sat on my bed in my hotel room staring at the wall. Maybe it would have been better if Luffy still thought I was dead. Atleast that way, it was something that was final. Something that couldn't be fixed. If I was still alive, then it was like there was something he couldn't have even though he could still see it. I shook my head. I wasn't making any since, even to myself.

Suddenly, there was a knock on my door. I stood up with a sigh to go and see who it was. I opened the door to find Vivi standing there. I must have looked really surprised or something because she spoke up.

"Are you okay? It's just me. Oh, and Chopper." she said.

"I'm sorry." I said with a slight shake of my head. "I just wasn't expecting you. That's all. Come on in." I walked over and pulled out a chair for her. Chopper walked in after her dragging an oversized bag behind him. He changed into his larger form and picked the bag up and set it on the bedside table before shrinking back down and sitting on the edge of the bed. "What's with the bag?" I asked.

"Well, Chopper said he wanted to examine you." Vivi explained.

"Thanks but I'm fine." I lied as I sat down beside Chopper and turned to face Vivi.

"Oh no! I insist!" Chopper said.

"Really. I'm okay." I protested.

"No you're not." Vivi said. "There must be something wrong with your head if you think we'll ever let you walk away from the crew!"

"What?!" I asked in surprise. "How did you find out?"

"Well, Luffy came back looking really depressed so I went to see what was wrong. He told me what happened so I came over here and brought Chopper to take a look at you." she explained.

I looked at the floor and ground the toe of my shoe into it. I hadn't counted on them trying to stop me. "You guys...I..." I said but trailed off, not knowing what to say.

Vivi smiled warmly. "I know how you feel but you'll make things worse for him if you stay here. You might think that you're a burden to him, but what you're doing to him now is ten times worse. You have to trust your nakama to be there for you when you need help. Believe in them and you'll make it through." she said.

"Vivi, it's not that I do believe in them. I do! It's just...when Lucci asked me if I was willing to risk my life and I told him yes he asked me something else." I said. I paused as I felt tears coming to my eyes. Vivi came and sat beside me and put a comforting hand on my shoulder. "He asked me if I was willing to risk Luffy's life. And the more I thought about that, the more I realized that I can't do that. Everyone always told me that if you care about someone, you have to think of them before yourself. I have to do what's best for him and this is it."

"Do you really believe that?" Vivi asked.

"Yes...no...I don't know." I finally said.

"Well, let's let Chopper take a look at you and then we'll go from there." she suggested.

"Okay." I finally agreed.

Chopper grinned. "Okay!" he cried enthusiastically. He walked over to his bag and pulled out various objects that I had no idea what they were. Suddenly, I wasn't so sure about this.

"Umm...Chopper...what exactly are you going to do?" I asked nervously.

"Just a little checkup." he said innocently as he pulled out a very pointy looking object out of his bag.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea." I muttered.

Vivi gave me a reasuring smile.

Once Chopper had layed out all his tools, he made me lay down in the bed. He carefully removed the bandages that covered the wound on my shoulder. When he saw what lay underneath them, I heard him inhale sharply.

"That bad huh?" I asked with a nervous chuckle.

"What can you tell me about this bullet? I've never seen anything like it." Chopper said.

"Is it really that bad?" I said with a glance at Chopper. He bit his lip and gave a small nod which didn't make things any better. "Well, let's see. Lucci told me about it so I'll try to tell you everything he said. What he said was that some guy named Vegapunk had designed it to be able to cut through rubber. It has an oblong shape but the tip has some kind of razor around it that allows it to cut. Then, he said that once it enters the skin, there are more blades that open up with seastone tips. That didn't affect me since I'm not a devil fruit user. But he also said that they stick into the skin, making it impossible to remove without causing more damage. That's about all he told me."

Chopper frowned slightly, as if deep in thought. He finally spoke up. "Well, I wish there was a better way of looking at it but there's really only one thing to do and it will probably hurt. And I'm not entirely sure that it will work, but I could still give it a try if you want to."

I gave a sigh. I thought about all the pain the bullet was already causing me. If there was the slightest chance that it could be fixed, then maybe it was worth a shot. "Okay. How long will it take?" I asked.

"Well, maybe an hour. Two hours. Three at the most." he said.

My mouth dropped open. "What?" I asked, making sure I'd heard him right.

"You didn't expect it to be easy, did you? That is a serious wound." Vivi pointed out.

"I guess not but still..." I stopped, not knowing what else to say. "Okay.Go ahead." I nervously layed back down.

Chopper grinned and then turned around and pulled something out of his bag. His back was to me so I couldn't see what it was. He turned around and came over to me with something hidden behind his back.

"Umm...what are you doing?" I asked warily.

He smiled. "You won't feel a thing. Just relax." he said and all of a sudden he brought out what was behind his back. I now saw that it was a shot.

"Wait! What are you-" but I didn't have time to finish. He stuck me with it and everything went dark.

"Wake up." I heard someone say as they gently shook me.

"Uhhh." I groaned without opening my eyes.

"Give me that." I heard someone else.

"Wait! Don't do that!" I heard the first voice cry.

"To late!" cried the other.

Suddenly, I found myself suddenly soaking wet, freezing cold, and wide awake. "What did you do that for?!!!" I sputtered, forgetting where I was for a moment.

I heard someone giggle behind me and I turned around to see Vivi laughing. Everything came back to me then. I took a deep breath and the dared to look at my arm. It had clean bandages around it but the pain was gone. I started to move it but Chopper stopped me.

"Don't try to move it yet!!!" he yelled. "You have to give it time to properly heal!"

I looked down at the floor only to find that my left ankle had a clean bandage around it too. I also discovered that all my other bandages had been removed. "Wow." I said in barely a whisper.

"So ya like it huh?" Chopper asked sweetly.

I smiled. "Thanks. How did you do it?!" I said in amazement.

"It wasn't to hard. Most of your wounds had already healed. The only real work was your ankle and the bullet. I'll come by tomorrow to check up on you." he explained. "Well, I guess we should go and let you rest. Come on Vivi."

"Um...if it's alright, I think I would like to stay here tonight." Vivi said with a glance in my direction.

"That's fine with me." I replied.

"O-okay." Chopper stuttered. From the look on his face, I could tell that they hadn't talked about Vivi staying here. "I better be going. The others might be worried." Chopper changed into his larger form, grabbed his bag, and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

"So, what's the real reason you wanted to stay?" I asked when I was sure Chopper was gone.

Vivi smiled. "I just got the feeling that you weren't telling us the whole truth earlier." she replied.

"About what?" I said innocently.

"The real reason you won't come with us." Vivi replied.

I sighed. "I guess you caught me then, huh? You really want to know the truth?" I asked.

She nodded.

"First, tell me what time it is." I demanded.

"It's probably around midnight." she told me.

"Thanks. Now, the real reason I don't want to come is that I'm...I'm...I'm afraid okay?!!" I finally cried.

"So, is that the truth? The full truth?" she asked.

"Yes." I muttered. "I'm afraid so quit making fun of me!" I looked away, afraid to look at her.

"I wasn't and I never planned to either. It's okay to be afraid, especially after what you've been through. I understand." she said gently.

I could feel hot tears running down my cheeks. "Thank you for being my nakama this long Vivi, but this is where we have to go our seperate ways. There's just to much working against me. But I'll never regret being your friend or the adventures we had. Thank you so much." I said.

"Don't say things like that!!! We're leaving tomorrow and you will leave with us!!! We're nakama and that means we never leave each other behind!!! SO STOP SAYING YOU'RE OT COMING!!!!!!!" she screamed.

I stopped crying. I had never seen Vivi this way before. "Vivi." I said quietly.

She softened a little and then layed a reasuring hand on my good shoulder. "Listen." she said as she looked me in the eye. "We'll look out for you. I'm not saying that nothing will happen to you because I don't know that. But I am saying that we want you with us and that we will protect you until you can do it yourself."

I gave a small smile. "Would you...would you really?" I asked.

"Always. And I'm sure there's someone else who will do much better than me, if you know what I mean." she said with a wink. "But right now, you need to make things right with that certain person."

"Luffy, right?" I said.

Vivi nodded. "Good guess."

"Okay." I finally said. "I'll come."

"Yay!" she cheered as she jumped up and hugged me. I flinched when she hit my right shoulder. She immediately let go and stepped back. "Sorry!"

"That's okay." I replied. "So," I finally got the courage up to ask, "How bad is it?"

"Why don't you look for yourself?" she suggested.

"But Chopper said-" I started to say but was cut off by Vivi.

"It's okay. Just take a quick look. But there is something you might want to know." she said but I didn't hear the last part. I was already busy unwrapping it.

I walked over to the small mirror and looked at what damage had been done. When I saw what it looked like, I gasped.

"The bullet, it had four extensions. And with the on in the middle...well..." Vivi trailed off but that was okay. I knew what she meant.

On my shoulder, where the bullet had been removed, was a scar in the shape of the World Government's flag.

_Well, I felt like that chapter was kind of boring but I want to know what you think, so please review. And once again, thanks for reading! Especially LuffyxRuby and firewing(Sorry if I spelled that wrong!). Thanks for being faithful readers and reviewers. Well, that's all for now. See you next chapter. Bye!_


	17. Chapter 17:Resolution

_Well, I'm this is the last actuall chapter but I think there will be a short afterward after this but nothing huge and long. So...enjoy!_

**Chpter 17**

The wind blew my hair every which way and so I decided to cut it later with Nami's help. I gave a small sigh as I watched the island shrink behind us. I was beginning to wonder if I had made the right decision. Deep in thought, I ran my finger over the thin scar in my shoulder, almost as if by habbit. It had been a small price to pay for the use of my arm again. I jumped as someone layed a hand on my shoulder.

"A little jumpy today?" Vivi asked.

I stuck my tounge out at her as I turned around.

"So, what's up?" she asked.

"I just have a lot on my mind. That's all." I replied as I turned back around to face the ocean. It was peaceful up here on the back balcony of the ship, so I had come here to think. I hadn't seen Luffy since I came on this ship two days ago. He was still upset and I can't say I blamed him.

Vivi walked over beside me and we watched the last glimpse of the island disappear. When all we could see was the open ocean behind us, she spoke up. "Are you ever going to talk to him? Or is our captain just going to have to stay in his slump?" she asked me.

"Hey!" I exclaimed. "I came back with you didn't I? Wasn't that enough?"

"What do you think?" she replied.

I sighed. "You sure do know how to make a person feel guilty." I said.

She turned to face me and smiled. "Things will never be the same until you do." she said.

"I know but...after all this...can we still...how can I..." I trailed off. I was pretty sure she knew what I meant.

"You always seem to find a way." Vivi said reasuringly.

I remained silent. I had no idea what to say.

"Well, I've got to go find Nami. I promised to help her and Robin clean our room. When you get done talking with Luffy, you can come help if you want." she said and then walked away, leaving me speechless.

After I was done gaping at her backside as she walked away, I thought about what I needed to do. In a way, she was right. I really did need to go talk to Luffy. With a heavy heart and even heavier footsteps, I began making my way bellow deck and towards Luffy's cabin. When I reached it, I suddenly found myself unable to lift my hand and knock. I took a deep breath and then forced myslef to knock quietly on the door, half way hoping that he wouldn't hear me. Unfortunately, he did. The door opened and I suddenly found myself face to face with Luffy.

"Ummm...hi." I said uncertainly.

Most of his face was shadowed by his hat so I couldn't tell what he was thinking. He turned and walked back to his hammock and sat down. He didn't look at me but he didn't shut the door either. No one else was in the room so I walked in.

"Luffy, listen. We have to talk sometime. We can't just keep avoiding each other like this." I said.

He didn't reply or even show that he had heard me.

I shifted uncomfortably at the awkward moment. "If you think this will never work out, then all you have to do is tell me to go. I'll leave and all you have to do is just say go." I said.

I took his silence as a yes.

"Well...before I go, I just want to say one thing. Thank you Luffy. Thank you for letting me come with you and accepting me as part of your crew. Thank you for being my nakama and later, my lover. And even if I leave today, I don't regret loving you or coming with you three years ago. And if one day, you want me back, I'll be waiting. I'll wait forever." I said and then turned to leave.

Right before I reached the door, I felt something grab onto my wrist and the words, "Don't go."

I slowly turned around to see Luffy looking at me. He let go of my wrist and his arm went back to it's normal place. I could now see his eyes and that is what made me stay. There was so much pain and love in that one look. I hadn't thought it was possible for so much emotion to be held in a single glance, but it was. I slowly walked back until I was standing infront of him. He stood up and looked at me long and hard. Then, all of a sudden, he grabbed me and pulled me close to him. He gently put his hand on my cheek and drew my face close to his until our lips met in a kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled even closer to him and he wrapped his arms around my waist. We stood there for what seemed like an eternity until we reluctently let go.

"I'm so sorry!" I cried.

"I don't want you to go!" he cried at the same time.

We suddenly burst out laughing for no reason. We sat down on his hammock together until we finally stopped laughing.

"So..." I said.

"So..." he said.

I became serious again. There was to much that was still between us that had to be fixed. "Luffy, I never meant to hurt you." I said. "I didn't want to stay behind. When you ran down that hallway and I thought I would never see you again...I felt like my heart was being ripped out. But I wanted you to be safe, no matter what happened to me and that's why I let you go. And I'm sorry for telling you I wouldn't come with you once you found me again. I was just scared. I was scared that I wasn't strong enough and that you wouldn't accept me anymore. I know how much it hurt you and I want you to know that it was not what I wanted. I wanted to come with you. I really did. Can you ever forgive me?" I begged.

He smiled. "I think I can." he replied with a small laugh.

I smiled. "So, what now? Can we just pick up where we left off? Or she would we just stay friends for now?" I asked.

He seemed to think for a minute. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled something out. He kept his hand closed so I couldn't figure what he had. He took my right hand with his free hand and held it up, my palm facing up, and dropped something into it. He let go and I pulled my hand back to see what it was. When I looked down, I saw that it was the ring he had given me that I had told him to protect. I felt the tears come into my eyes.

"Thank you Luffy." I said quietly. I looked up to see him smiling. "But can we really just pick up where we left off? After all that's happened?"

"We can try." he said.

I smiled. He was right. And somewhere deep down, I knew things would be okay.

"Well, I've got to go help clean our room. I'll see you later?" I asked.

He nodded and smiled.

I stood up to leave but as I got to the door, I turned around and smiled at him. He smiled back as if to say, everything's fine. You can go. I nodded and then left with a wide grin plastered on my face. After everything that had happened, it was nice to know some things never change and that, no matter what, I would always have Luffy by my side. I slipped the ring back onto my finger and began humming as I walked to our room. After all, this was just another typical day.

_Thanks for reading everybody! It's been great. See you next time for the end of the whole Luffy and Alley stories. Sniff. Sob. I'm going to miss writing these. It was fun but I guess all good things end. So, see you next time!_


	18. Afterward

_This is the last chapter of this story. Just so you know, this part takes place years later on Thousand Sunny._

**Afterward**

Luffy was pacing up and down the hall. This was always the part he hated the most. He thought that since this was the third time, he wouldn't be like this but he had thought wrong.

At that moment, Vivi came dashing down the hallway. She looked exausted but in a good way.

"Is it-" Luffy started to ask but was cut off with a nod and a gesture for him to follow from Vivi. He quickly ran after her until they came to the sick bay. Vivi opened the door and her and Luffy walked in.

He walked over to the bed nervously.

"You don't have to be so nervous!" I said with a small laugh. In my arms was our newborn son. "We've already been through this twice. This is the third time Luffy!"

He blushed which only made me laugh harder.

"So, do you want to hold him?" I asked.

He nodded so I handed him our son. Luffy took him and held him gently. He woke up and looked up at Luffy with his big black eyes. He had a small tuft of black hair on the top of his head and I could have sworn he looked just like Luffy. All of a sudden, he reached up and grabbed Luffy's hat and put it on his own head. It was way to big and flopped down over his face.

Luffy smiled.

"He acts just like you. He even has your love of that strawhat." I said.

Luffy's smile grew even bigger.

"So, what should we name him?" I asked.

"I don't know." Luffy replied helplessly.

"Hmm...well, don't you have a family name that needs to be carried on? We named our other son after your brother. And the second was a daughter. Who knows, this might be your last opportunity to name one after you." I said.

"Yeah. But we can't just name him Luffy Jr." he said.

"Well, I've always liked the name Takashi." I suggested.

He smiled. "That's perfect!" he said. Then he looked down at Takashi and said, "Welcome to the world Monkey D. Takashi. Since you're named after me, you have to be the next Pirate King, you got that?"

Takashi laughed a baby version of Luffy's laugh and me and Luffy laughed along with him. We had three beautiful children, great friends, and we had each other. There was nothing else we could ever need or want. Our lives were basically perfect. As I watched Takashi and his father laugh, I wondered what was in store for Takashi in his life. After all, with a name like that, there was no doubt that his life would be filled with adventure.

**The End**

_Well, I hope you liked it! I know I enjoyed writing it. I would like to thank all my readers for reading and then reviewing. I hope all of you liked it! Who knows, I might just have to write a story about Takashi one day. But if I do, it will be awhile. So for now, this is MonkeyStrawhatLuffy saying, BYE!!!_


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